Presbyopia, also known as "short arm syndrome", is a medical
term used to describe a vision defect where the natural lens
loses its accommodation power. Accommodation power refers to the
ability of the eye lens to change its focal distance, depending
on whether the object in view is placed up-close or far away.
This is a common disorder that virtually everyone experiences in
their middle age. Specifically, at the onset of the 40s, people
experience blurred vision while looking at nearby objects, such
as when reading or sewing.
Presbyopia is different from other vision disorders, such as
nearsightedness, farsightedness and astigmatism - these are all
concerned with the shape of the eyeball or the corneal tissue
and are caused due to genetic factors, trauma, or disease.
However, Presbyopia is an age related disorder and is believed
to be caused due to a gradual loss of elasticity of the natural
eye lens. As the eye lens stiffens with age, it is difficult for
the lens to focus up close.
Presbyopia is not normally curable, but the loss of
accommodation power can be compensated for by using eyeglasses
or contact lenses. A few patients might require bifocal or
progressive lenses. As the ability to focus deteriorates, the
prescription lens needs to be changed accordingly. In order to
eliminate the dependence on bifocals or reading glasses, some
people opt for a method called "monovision", where one eye is
corrected for near and the other for far. However, monovision
may interfere with depth perception, and not everyone can adapt
to monovision.
When Presbyopia sets in, LASIK can be used to produce
monovision. However, it's recommended that at first you try
monovision with contact lenses, in order to be sure that you can
adapt to the change. Another surgical option, which was approved
in March 2004 by the Food and Drug Association (FDA), is a
procedure known as conductive keratoplasty (CK).
Research is ongoing and it suggests that a cure for Presbyopia
is quite possible. New surgical procedures also promise
solutions for those who don't wish to wear eyeglasses or contact
lenses while suffering from Presbyopia.
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