\r\n \r\n An Eye Full - A Look At Ophthalmology Terms
\n
\nMyopia (Nearsightedness)
\n
\nNearsightedness, or myopia, is a vision problem experienced by up to about
\none-third of the population. Nearsighted people have difficulty reading highway
\nsigns and seeing other objects at a distance, but can see for up-close tasks
\nsuch as reading or sewing.
\n
\nMyopia Symptoms and Signs
\n
\nMyopic people often have headaches or eyestrain, and might squint or feel
\nfatigued when driving or playing sports. If you experience these symptoms while
\nwearing your glasses or contact lenses, you may need a comprehensive eye
\nexamination as well as a new prescription.
\n
\nWhat Causes Myopia?
\n
\nMyopia occurs when the eyeball is slightly longer than usual from front to back.
\nThis causes light rays to focus at a point in front of the retina, rather than
\ndirectly on its surface.
\n
\nNearsightedness runs in families and usually appears in childhood. This vision
\nproblem may stabilize at a certain point, although sometimes it worsens with
\nage. This is known as myopic creep.
\n
\nHyperopia (Farsightedness)
\n
\nHyperopia, or farsightedness, is a common vision problem, affecting about a
\nfourth of the population. People with hyperopia can see distant objects very
\nwell, but have difficulty seeing objects that are up close.Hyperopia Symptoms
\nand Signs
\n
\nFarsighted people sometimes have headaches or eyestrain, and may squint or feel
\nfatigued when performing work at close range. If you get these symptoms while
\nwearing your glasses or contact lenses, you may need an eye exam and a new
\nprescription.
\n
\nWhat Causes Hyperopia?
\n
\nThis vision problem occurs when light rays entering the eye focus behind the
\nretina, rather than directly on it. The eyeball of a farsighted person is
\nshorter than normal.Many children are born with hyperopia, and some of them
\n"outgrow" it as the eyeball lengthens with normal growth.
\n
\nThe hyperopic eye is shorter than normal. Incoming light focuses behind, instead
\nof on, the retina. Near objects look blurry to farsighted people.
\n
\nSometimes people confuse hyperopia with presbyopia, which also is a difficulty
\nin seeing up close, but has a different cause.
\n
\nPresbyopia
\n
\nThose who lose the ability to focus on objects in the near range including the
\nability to read fine print. The 40-and-over crowd is finding that their arms are
\n"growing shorter" as words become difficult to see up close, and they must hold
\nsmall items at arm\'s length in order to be able to view them clearly.Called
\npresbyopia, this condition occurs as eyes gradually lose their ability to focus
\non objects in the near range. But boomers have more choices than their parents
\never did when it comes to near vision correction.Reading glasses are a popular
\noption. With all sorts of styles and colors, 40-somethings can have a pair for
\nevery room in the house. And they work great as an adjunct to contact lenses
\n
\nFor some, segmented spectacle lenses, or multifocals with lines, serve a
\nspecific purpose. Other presbyopes are flocking to no-line bifocals, or
\nprogressive lenses, in droves now that there\'s no need to reveal to the world
\nthat one is a bifocal wearer. These lenses have more going for them than just
\ngood looks, though. They enable the wearer to see at all distances, from far
\naway to up close, similar to the way that a person who doesn\'t need vision
\ncorrection focuses.
\n
\nMacular Degeneration
\n
\nAlthough many people are not aware of it, macular degeneration, often called AMD
\nor ARMD (for age-related macular degeneration), is the leading cause of
\nblindness in the world. The eye-health organization Prevent Blindness America
\nestimates that 13 million Americans have evidence of macular degeneration.The
\ndisease breaks down the macula, the light-sensitive part of the retina
\nresponsible for the sharp, direct vision needed to read or drive. Central
\nvision, especially, is affected. Macular degeneration is diagnosed as either dry
\n(atrophic) or wet (exudative). The dry form is more common than the wet, with
\nabout 90% of AMD patients diagnosed with dry AMD. The wet form of the disease
\nusually leads to more serious vision loss. Macular degeneration is more common
\nin people over age 65, and whites and females tend to get the disease more than
\ntheir counterparts. Most cases of macular degeneration are related to aging. It
\nalso can occur as a side effect of some drugs, and it appears to run in
\nfamilies. Macular degeneration mainly affects central vision, causing "blind
\nspots" directly ahead.
\n
\nMacular Degeneration Symptoms and Signs
\n
\nMacular degeneration can produce a slow or sudden painless loss of vision. If
\nstraight lines look wavy to you, your vision seems fuzzy, or there are shadowy
\nareas in your central vision, you may be experiencing early signs of AMD.One way
\nto tell if you are having these vision problems is to view an Amsler grid, which
\nis a chart of black lines arranged in a graph pattern. Click here to see how an
\nAmsler grid works. Often, an eyecare practitioner will detect early signs of
\nmacular degeneration before you experience symptoms. This usually is
\naccomplished through a visual field screening, a brief test that measures your
\ncentral vision. If the eyecare practitioner detects some defect in your central
\nvision, such as distortion or blurriness, he or she will order a full visual
\nfield exam, a much longer test that provides more extensive information about
\nyour vision.
\n
\nWhat Causes Macular Degeneration?
\n
\nThe exact causes of age-related macular degeneration are still unknown. The dry
\nform of AMD may result from the aging and thinning of macular tissues,
\ndepositing of pigment in the macula, or a combination of the two processes. With
\nwet AMD, new blood vessels grow beneath the retina and leak blood and fluid.
\nThis leakage causes retinal cells to die and creates blind spots in central
\nvision. Factors that place you at a higher risk for AMD include having a family
\nmember with AMD, smoking, high blood pressure, farsightedness and obesity.
\nWhites and females tend to get the disease more than their counterparts.
\n
\nMany researchers and eyecare practitioners believe that certain nutrients �
\nzinc, lutein, zeaxanthin and vitamins A, C and E � help lower the risk for AMD
\nor slow down the progression of dry AMD. Dietary fat may be a factor as well. A
\nstudy published in the August 2001 issue of Archives of Ophthalmology found that
\nconsumption of omega-3 fatty acids, which are particularly prevalent in
\ncold-water fish, had a protective effect against advanced macular degeneration.
\nMeanwhile, consumption of omega-6 fatty acids, prevalent in vegetable oils, was
\nassociated with an increased risk.
\n
\nSome cases of macular degeneration are side effects of toxic drugs such as
\nAralen (chloroquine, an anti-malarial drug) or phenothiazine, rather than
\nage-related. Phenothiazine is a class of anti-psychotic drugs, including
\nThorazine (chlorpromazine, which is also used to treat nausea and vomiting, and
\nintractable hiccups), Mellaril (thioridazine), Prolixin (fluphenazine), Trilafon
\n(perphenazine) and Stelazine (trifluoperazine).
\n
\n
\nAndrew Pacholyk, MS. L.Ac
\nhttps://www.peacefulmind.com\r\n

\r\n __________________
\r\n "We can judge the heart of a man by his treatment of animals." ~Immanual Kant~
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