Myopia vs. Hyperopia: What’s the Difference?
Patient’s come to our office with a number of different visual problems on a daily basis. Myopia and hyperopia are two common vision conditions that can have a significant impact on a person’s quality of life.
What is Myopia?
Myopia, or near-sightedness, occurs when the eyeball is too long in relation to the focusing power of the eye. This results in blurry vision when looking at distant objects. Generally, your near vision will be clear.
What is Hyperopia?
Hyperopia, or far-sightedness, occurs when the eyeball is too short in relation to the focusing power of the eye. This results in difficulty seeing objects that are close-up. While people who do not need glasses may say they are “far-sighted” this is not true. A hyperopic patient is able to appreciate objects at extreme distances but may not be able to focus on closer, more functional objects.
A third condition that can also affect a patient’s vision is astigmatism. Astigmatism is not near sightedness or far sightedness, but rather is related to the steepness of a patient’s cornea. The cornea is the clear dome overlying the eye that’s main purpose is to refract (bend) light as it travels into the eye. If the cornea is uniformly shaped (think a half-sphere, or a basketball cut in half), no astigmatism would be present. If the cornea is shaped more like an American football cut in half (steeper in one meridian than 90 degrees away) astigmatism would be present. Astigmatism has a torsional effect on light.
The Difference Between Myopia & Hyperopia
Despite being two totally separate conditions, myopia and hyperopia do present with some of the same symptoms. These include but are not limited to headaches, eye fatigue, squinting, general eye discomfort and of course, blurred vision. The blurred vision a patient experiences will be different distances, depending on the condition.
Myopia and hyperopia can be noticed more as other conditions with the eye develop. These include, but are not limited to presbyopia and cataracts. Presbyopia is the natural loss of reading vision as we age. Cataracts are the natural clouding of a person's lens, which will also come with age. Both presbyopia and cataracts will develop in all patients around the ages of 45 and 55, respectively.
As mentioned above, when the focusing power is incorrectly aligned with the length of the eye, a patient is either near sighted or far sighted. Both of these conditions can be corrected with glasses, contacts, and surgery. All of these options involve changing the way light bends to allow it to land on the retina (rather than in front of, or behind). The retina is a group of light sensitive cells that help transmit the image of the object entering your eye to the brain.
We recommend getting regular eye exams with your ophthalmologist in order to discuss the various options for nearsightedness and farsightedness. Schedule an appointment with Colorado Eye Surgeons today!
