Book an appointmentWhat is hyperopia (farsighted)?
Hyperopia is an anomaly in which the eye is short, which causes the distance between the cornea and the retina to be less, and therefore loses refractive power. This means that the images are focused behind the retina, making it impossible to obtain a clear image.
Hyperopia (farsighted) is the most common refractive disorder. It is measured in diopters with a positive sign (+1,+2,+3…) and can be associated with astigmatism.
Why is it produced?
In most cases the cause of farsightedness is a genetic pathology, it is inherited from the parents who suffer from this disease. For the refractive error of farsightedness to occur, the diameter of the eye must be smaller than normal or the cornea must be too flat.
Physiologically, most newborns are farsighted, and they correct themselves as the eye grows, disappearing in adolescence.
This is farsightedness
How is hyperopia (farsighted) manifested?
At the beginning of the disease, the so-called latent hyperopia occurs, which is compensated with the accommodation of the ciliary muscle of the eye, giving normal vision. For this reason, it is common for hyperopic patients to be asymptomatic in their youth.
However, this continuous effort of the muscle to focus on nearby objects can cause headaches, eyestrain, and even diseases such as amblyopia (lazy eye) or strabismus (deviation of the eyes), which require correction.
Over time, this accommodative possibility is lost, manifesting the main symptom of the disease, which is the blurred vision of nearby objects.
It is very important to pay special attention to children, since sometimes they show symptoms that are difficult to relate to vision, such as school failure.
Hyperopia (farsighted) treatments
Farsightedness can be optically corrected with converging lenses, either with glasses or contact lenses.
If the patient wishes to see correctly without optical correction, they can benefit from surgical treatments such as LASIK laser refractive surgery if the defect is low (+4, +5 diopters), or through intraocular lenses in patients with a greater number of of diopters.
Prevention
Farsightedness cannot be prevented, but it can be detected in the early stages.
Childhood farsightedness must be controlled to follow its evolution. In the event that it does not disappear in adolescence, it is likely to persist for life, but it will not increase in diopters throughout the patient’s adult life.
It is recommended to review the vision of patients diagnosed with hyperopia once a year, since it can be associated with other eye diseases, such as glaucoma, strabismus or amblyopia.
Summary
Debut
At any age. It is common for children to present farsightedness, which is usually corrected in adolescence.
Symptoms
Asymptomatic in youth or with headaches, dizziness, eye irritation. In overt farsightedness, the main symptom is blurred vision of close objects.
Revision
Revision It is advisable to regularly check vision in children to detect farsightedness.
Prevention
Prevention Farsightedness cannot be prevented, but detecting it in its early stages is key.
