What you see?
Blurry vision. An astigmatic eye can either have a cornea that is irregularly shaped or an irregularly curved lens. As a result light fails to come to a single focus on the retina to produce clear vision.
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Symptoms of astigmatism
- Can exist in combination with nearsightedness and farsightedness
- Objects both near and far are blurred or distorted producing an effect similar to looking through a pane of wavy glass
- Constant squinting of the eyes
- Inability to read small print
- Difficulty driving at night
Causes of astigmatism
Because of an irregular shaped cornea:
- Light is correctly focused along one axis, but incorrectly along the other
- Light entering the eye is not focused on a single point on the retina
What to do
- Astigmatism can be diagnosed by an eye care professional through a variety of tests, including a simple vision test, light refraction test, cornea measurement, or electronically mapping the surface of the eye
- The uneven distribution of light is corrected by refocusing light rays on a single plane, this is done in a number of ways:
- Spectacles
- Contact lenses – are uniquely designed to meet the special vision correction needs of people with astigmatism
- Surgery – Astigmatic Keratotomy is performed through LASIK laser technology (photorefractive keratotomy) or by manual incisions (radial keratotomy), this procedure reshapes the cornea by removing small pieces of tissue from the cornea
