Astigmatism
Astigmatism means your eye is not round. It often occurs with nearsightedness and farsightedness, conditions also resulting from refractive errors. Astigmatism is not a disease nor does it mean that you have "bad eyes." It simply means that you have a variation or disturbance in the shape of your cornea, the front surface of your eye.
Symptoms Of Astigmatism
People with astigmatism may experience headaches, eye strain, blurry vision at all distances, squinting, and difficulty driving at night.
The cornea of a normal eye is curved like a basketball, with the same degree of roundness in all areas. An eye with astigmatism has a cornea that is curved more like a football, with some areas that are steeper or more rounded than others. This can cause images to appear blurry and stretched out.
Causes Of Astigmatism
People can be born with astigmatism, or it can be caused or it may develop. You can also get it from an eye injury, disease or surgery.
Astigmatism In Children
Children with astigmatism may complain of blurry or distorted vision. Uncorrected astigmatism can impact a child's performance in school and sports. Large amounts of astigmatism, or when there is more astigmatism in one eye than the other may be a cause of a lazy eye, also called amblyopia. This can be a cause of permanent vision loss.
Keratoconus
Some forms of astigmatism can be a sign of keratoconus, a cone-like bulge of the cornea, which can distort vision. It is important for children to be screened or examined to detect astigmatism or other vision problems as early as possible.
Treatment For Astigmatism
Astigmatism can be corrected with eyeglasses, contact lenses, or surgery. Onsite Optical sells special soft contact lenses, called toric. They can be made to bend light more in one direction than the other. If you have severe astigmatism, rigid contacts or glasses may be a better option. Schedule an appointment to discuss your lens options.