Many of you had to reach for your readings glasses before reading this article. If you are in your early to mid forties, you may be starting to develop the symptoms of presbyopia, and like many of my patients, you are probably not too happy with the idea of reaching for a pair of reading glasses. Presbyopia is the inability to focus at near due to aging changes in the muscles of the eye and the natural lens.
There are solutions to correcting presbyopia other than wearing reading glasses. Interesting surgical options, such as the Restor intraocular lens implant, are reasonable if you have cataracts. For those of you who do not have cataracts, you make consider getting fit for contact lenses in one or both eyes, to help with your near vision. If you already wear contact lenses for near sightedness, you may need an adjustment in the power to allow you to read more comfortably. You could also be a candidate for monovision with contacts or with lasik, in which your non-dominant eye is corrected for near vision and your dominant eye is corrected for distance vision. Monovision is not for everyone, so it is important to try it with contacts before committing to it. Bifocal contact lenses are another suitable option even if you have never worn contacts before. If you are not opposed to wearing reading glasses, sometimes over-the-counter readers is all you need. Its important to schedule an appointment with an ophthalmologist who can review your surgical and non-surgical options and get you reading 20/20 again.
There are solutions to correcting presbyopia other than wearing reading glasses. Interesting surgical options, such as the Restor intraocular lens implant, are reasonable if you have cataracts. For those of you who do not have cataracts, you make consider getting fit for contact lenses in one or both eyes, to help with your near vision. If you already wear contact lenses for near sightedness, you may need an adjustment in the power to allow you to read more comfortably. You could also be a candidate for monovision with contacts or with lasik, in which your non-dominant eye is corrected for near vision and your dominant eye is corrected for distance vision. Monovision is not for everyone, so it is important to try it with contacts before committing to it. Bifocal contact lenses are another suitable option even if you have never worn contacts before. If you are not opposed to wearing reading glasses, sometimes over-the-counter readers is all you need. Its important to schedule an appointment with an ophthalmologist who can review your surgical and non-surgical options and get you reading 20/20 again.
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