As a person gets to the age of 40 and above the problem of ‘old eyes’ can manifest, but with the help of contact lenses for presbyopia it’s possible to have clearer vision.
What is presbyopia, and can contact lenses really help?
Presbyopia happens as people age due to the loss of elasticity in the lens of the eye. When this does happen, the symptoms often felt are eyestrain and difficulty in reading fine print or making out objects that are near or in low light. Thus, when one suffers from presbyopia it’s more difficult to focus on objects that are near the eyes and easier to see objects that are farther. In fact, some patients who suffer from presbyopia might even be thought to have 20/20 vision.
In years past, the only way for people to correct the problem of presbyopia was through using glasses. These glasses were usually reading glasses or bifocal glasses that can help in reading fine print or seeing things that are nearby. But in recent years, opticians have been prescribing the use of contact lenses for presbyopia. This has definitely made it more convenient for people who suffer from the condition of old eyes. It’s important to note though that one has to go to an optician before they can obtain contact lenses to correct presbyopia.
What type of contact lenses will opticians recommend for presbyopia?
There are mainly three types of contact lenses that opticians will recommend but only after they’ve run tests and discussed the options to the patient. Each of the different lenses used for presbyopia has its own advantages and disadvantages and will take a bit of time for each person to get used to.
There are mono-vision lenses, then there are bifocal lenses, and there are multifocal lenses available. Whichever lens the optician might recommend it’s important that they spend time to explain to the patient how the lenses work and how a patient can adjust to using such lenses. There’s even a possibility that some patients might compromise their vision to correct presbyopia. That’s why it’s important to discuss all possible repercussions with an optician before using contact lenses for presbyopia.
When a patient starts to use lenses for presbyopia, light from all distances enter the pupil of the eyes simultaneously. Thus, the brain has to process a lot of images coming in from all distances which at first can be quite confusing. In fact, it might take around a couple of weeks before the brain fully adjusts and makes the images seen through the lenses much clearer. A patient should be fully aware of this as some might think that the contact lenses are making their vision worse and not better. It’s why opticians should always stress the fact that contact lenses will take time to get used to.
As one ages and nears 40 there’s a possibility that the lenses in the eye stiffens or loses its elasticity. Once this happens, people end up with the problem of presbyopia or old eyes. To correct this problem, glasses have been the only choice in previous years, but with recent advances in technology there are now contact lenses for presbyopia that help people attain clearer vision.