Presbyopia: Knowing What It Is and Your Treatment Options
The team at Monterey County Eye Associates offers patients comprehensive and advanced ophthalmology services, helping improve eye health and overall vision quality. This includes addressing issues that come with advanced age, such as presbyopia. Since a number of patients have had questions about the nature of presbyopia lately, we'd like to go over these matters in more detail right now.
About Presbyopia
Presbyopia is a natural part of the aging process. It is a type of hyperopia (farsightedness) that sets in around middle age, becoming more and more likely as a person grows older.
The condition is a result of the hardening of the natural lens of the eye. As the lens becomes less flexible, a person finds it more difficult to focus on objects that are nearby.
Symptoms of Presbyopia
The most common symptoms of presbyopia begin around middle age. Patients will notice issues with reading material, often needing to hold books or newspapers further from their face. Eyestrain while reading will also become more common as presbyopia develops.
Thankfully there are many different options out there to address presbyopia as it occurs.
Monovision Refractive Surgery
One option to consider is monovision refractive surgery. This kind of eye surgery involves performing refractive surgery on just one eye rather than both. In monovision refractive procedures, the non-dominant eye will be corrected for near vision.
There are different kinds of eye surgeries that can be performed for monovision procedures:
- LASIK
- LASEK
- PRK
- Conductive keratoplasty (CK)
Keep in mind that not everyone is an ideal candidate for refractive surgery. In addition, some patients may still need to wear corrective lenses after monovision refractive surgery in order to see clearly.
Intraocular Lenses (IOLs)
Intraocular lenses (IOLs) are artificial lens implants that are used to completely replace the lens of the eye. It's an effective option to consider, though it's possible for overall near vision quality to be diminished due to the use of an IOL.
Corneal Inlays
Corneal inlays do no affect the lens per se. These are small plastic rings that are surgically placed in order to alter the contour of the cornea. Doing this improves vision and can potentially treat presbyopia.
Glasses
Reliable and simple, glasses are a sure way to address the issues people face as a result of presbyopia. Some patients will benefit from wearing bifocals or trifocals, which is a common solution for this issue. Other patients may prefer having a set of reading glasses, or perhaps two sets of glasses: one for near vision needs and the other for distance vision needs.
Contact Lenses
Contact lenses can also be used for presbyopia. Bifocal contact lenses are available, as well as special monovision contacts (i.e., the dominant eye receives a distance vision contact lens, the non-dominant eye receives a near vision contact lens). The ideal option can be discussed during a consultation.
Schedule a Consultation at Monterey County Eye Associates
For more information about presbyopia and how it can be effectively treated, it's important that you contact our vision correction specialists and eye doctors today. The team at Monterey County Eye Associates will work with you to ensure you get the treatment you need to enhance your vision and eye health.
