Treatment and Management of Nearsightedness

Aristotle (384-322 BC) is credited with the first observation of myopia as a visual condition. Galen created the term myopia from Myein (to close) and pos (eye) as he observed individuals with myopia close the eyes (squint) to see better.

In order to understand the causes of blurry eyesight from nearsightedness, one must understand basic eye physiology. Light is reflected off objects and enters the eye through several lens-like elements that bend, or refract, the light rays. The purpose of the bending of the light rays is to focus them on the light-sensitive tissue in the back of our eyes, the Retina. When light rays reflected off an object we look at are focused on the Retina properly, the object will look clear to us. If the light rays are bent too much, they will focus to a point in front of the retina and spread out again by the time they reach the retina. The result is a blurred Retinal image. Myopia, or Nearsightedness, occurs when the refractive power of the eye focuses light to a point before reaching the retina.

People who are nearsighted have eyes that act like magnifiers when viewing near objects and minifiers when viewing far objects. Putting corrective lenses on magnifies the distance objects and minifies the near and that is why nearsighted people will tell you they read better when their glasses are off. Farsighted people have naturally magnified distance vision and minified near. When they put on glasses distance and near get more magnified. When both groups are over 40 and attempt to read, theirglasses may not provide the necessary power and it might be necessary to include an “add”, also known as bifocal or multifocal into the lens to assist

Options such as Orthokeratology ( OrthoK), cornea refractive therapy including paragon crt (vision shaping treatment) are particularly helpful when seeking to improve eyesight in children, and reduce change in vision , specifically myopia in children and may, in some cases reduce the risk of children with myopia advancing to high myopia. These therapies are part of a class of therapies known as corneal reshaping therapies and are FDA approved therapies with decades long track record of success. They involve using devices known as orthokeratology lenses (ortho k lenses) which are put in the eye before bedtime. Upon awakening, the orthok lenses are removed and within a few minutes clear vision is achieved that lasts, in most cases, all day long into the evenings.

If you are interested in managing your vision or the vision of a loved one with nearsightedness and concerned about vision changes, contact an eye doctor from our directory near you or read through our website to learn about other options for improving your eyesight.