Hyperopia (Farsightedness)
Posted: Thursday, March 12, 2009
by Lindsay Pollard
The eye condition hyperopia is more often known as farsightedness or long-sightedness. It is the consequence of a defect in the ability of your eyes to focus. When someone is suffering from hyperopia, it means that they are incapable of focusing on items that are near, with the object seeming blurred. However, they should not have difficulty focusing on items that are in the distance.
When a person has hyperopia their vision is created normally, with light rays passing though the cornea and lens of the eye, but instead of the light rays becoming focused onto the retina, they are focused external of the eyeball, keeping the retina from receiving a clear picture.
There are various reasons this can occur. If the eye itself is too short, from front to back, preventing the light rays from being projected onto the retina. Alternatively the problem might be at the front of the eye with the cornea or lens. If the cornea is not domed enough it will not refract the light rays at a sufficient degree to successfully direct them onto the retina, this can also happen if the lens of the eye isn't thick enough.
Hyperopia is often associated with the ageing process. While this is true, the farsightedness that takes place in middle age is named presbyopia and is caused by the lens of the eye losing its flexibility. While this is a part of the normal ageing process it is still important that you get your eyes checked by an optician.
Children can also suffer from farsightedness and some are even born with the condition. For some children their condition will get better as they get older and the natural growth of their eyes. However it is still crucial to get a child's eyes checked if they show any signs of being long sighted, as left untreated in young children it can result in other problems, lazy eyes for example.
People who suffer from long-sightedness can be impacted differently, based on their life style and career. People with hyperopia might find themselves suffering with these everyday symptoms:
- Tender and irritable eyes can be a consequence of the constant effort to view close objects and to read and write. Your blink rate might be impacted if you are constantly staring at objects trying to get them into focus, giving your eyeballs a dry and scratchy feeling.
- Inability to stay focused on newspapers and magazines is perhaps the most often recognized symptoms of long-sightedness. If you are suffering from long-sightedness you may find that you try to read things by holding them out at arms length. This is often a subconscious reaction to the inability to focus on things close by.
- Eyestrain and headaches are regular for people with long-sightedness and usually result from the eyes being unable to focus on items that are close. Squinting is a common way of dealing with farsightedness and can result in headaches and tension due to the unnatural effort.
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Top-level comments on this article: (2 total)I have the opposite of that condition. I always thought I couldn't see th moon clearly because it was so far away. :) I could never make out clouds clearly and couldnt see something properly unless it was a foot in front of me.
Good article and very informative...God bless you...Keep writing...
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