Eye Testing and Glasses

The four types

• Myopia (short-sightedness): distant objects are blurred, near vision is clear. Common in children and often increases through the school years.
• Hypermetropia (long-sightedness): the eye has to work harder to focus, particularly up close. In children it can cause headaches, tired eyes and sometimes a squint.
• Astigmatism: the cornea is shaped more like a rugby ball than a football, so vision is blurred or distorted at all distances.
• Presbyopia: the normal age-related loss of near focus that begins around 40. Everyone develops it eventually. It is not a disease.

Symptoms

• Blurred vision, at distance or near or both
• Screwing up the eyes to see
• Headaches, especially after reading or close work
• Tired, aching eyes
• Holding books and phones very close, or at arm’s length
• Difficulty seeing the board at school
• Trouble with night driving
• Double vision or shadowing around letters

Children and refractive error

A child with uncorrected refractive error is often labelled slow, inattentive or disruptive, when the actual problem is that they cannot see the board. It is one of the most common and most easily missed reasons for a child falling behind.

Uncorrected refractive error in a young child can also lead to amblyopia, a lazy eye that becomes permanent if it is not corrected in time. This is why we recommend an eye test before a child starts school.

How the eye test works

Testing is quick and painless. We measure how clearly you see, then determine your exact prescription. In children and young adults we use drops that temporarily relax the focusing muscle, because without them the eye can mask a long-sighted prescription and give a false result. The drops blur near vision for a few hours.

We also examine the health of the eye itself. Blurred vision is usually refractive, but not always, and it is important to be sure.

Correction

• Spectacles: simple, safe and effective. Our optical service dispenses lenses to your prescription.
• Contact lenses: suitable for many people, with proper instruction in hygiene and care, which matters a great deal in preventing corneal infection.
• Reading glasses for presbyopia, updated every few years as focus continues to change.
• Refractive surgery: an option for some adults with a stable prescription; our team can advise whether it is appropriate for you.

Wearing the correct spectacles does not weaken your eyes or make you dependent on them. That belief keeps a great many people, and a great many children, seeing badly for no reason.

Book an eye test

If your vision is blurred, if you are getting headaches when you read, or if your child is struggling at school, book an eye test at St Joseph’s Eye Hospital Mgbirichi. Many people discover how much they had been missing only after they put the glasses on.