Options for Corection of Poor Eyesight

If the power of the eye is not correct there are up to 4 ways to correct it.

1.YOU - If the eye is long sighted (not strong enough) and accommodation (bending of the lens inside the eye by the eyes own intra-ocular muscles) is adequate the problem can be compensated for naturally. Unfortunately as the eye becomes older this ability to accommodate decreases due to the thickening of the lens and so this option is less likely to be viable as we age. With larger amounts of long sightedness this is often not an option even when young.

The power of the eye is governed mainly by the curve on the front of the eye (the cornea) and if this does not match the length of the eye problems arise with the focussing. The other three options deal with this problem in different ways.

2. Spectacle Lenses are held in front of the eye to compensate for the error.
The curve on the lens dictates its power and the lens has on it equal and opposite curves to the discrepancy on the eye - the values are not exact but the concept holds. Please look at our separate section for further details.

The next two options take a different approach in that they replace the front curve of the eye.

3. Contact Lenses, as the name suggests, are in contact with the eye and form a new artificial front to the eye. The new front is no longer just the cornea but is now made up of cornea, then a layer of tears and then the contact lens. The new front to the eye is the front of the contact lens and this is manufactured so that its curve matches the length of the eye. Please look at our separate section for further details.

4. Refractive (Laser) Surgery has various forms but by far the most common is where the cornea is reshaped using a laser. An incredibly accurate laser ‘cuts’ a new curve on the front of the cornea to match the length of the eye. Please look at our separate section for further details.