Synonyms:
HyperopiaIf the eye is smaller than normal (axial hyperopia) or the refractive media (lens, cornea) have a flatter curvature (refractive hyperopia), near vision is blurred. Vision is usually better in the distance. Far-sightedness is therefore in most cases congenital and caused by the abnormal construction of the eye.
The growth of the eyeball has a considerable influence on farsightedness in children. Most children are slightly farsighted during the pre-school period, but this does not cause any problems. With time and the general growth of the body and eyes, however, this visual impairment grows out and thus normalizes.
If farsightedness remains in children and they have complaints such as headaches, tired eyes, lack of concentration, poor farsightedness can be compensated by accommodation of the eye (exertion of the inner eye muscles and thus increase in refractive power) and therefore often remains undetected for a long time. Children in particular have a very good ability to accommodate, which is why it is particularly important to pay attention here to whether they could be suffering from farsightedness if the corresponding symptoms appear. In addition, unbalanced farsightedness in children can cause them to begin to squint, as they compensate their ametropia with effort from the inner eye muscles.
The reason for the subsequent internal strabismus is the coupling of accommodation with convergence. This means that when the inner eye muscles are strained to see, they automatically perform an inward rotation, i.e. strabismus of the nose occurs. If a child squints to compensate for his farsightedness, he may develop impaired spatial vision in addition to a visual impairment.
Therefore, a farsighted child should be prescribed glasses at the latest as soon as his or her farsightedness exceeds +2.5 or +3.0 diopters. Children are then usually prescribed slightly weaker lenses. The development of the eyes (visual acuity, spatial vision) is thus supported as a whole, which is particularly important since this development cannot be made up for at a later age.
Long-sightedness in children is usually significantly reduced by the growth of the eyeball in the first years of life. However, how long your child should wear glasses can only be determined by regular measurements, approximately once a year. Checks to test visual acuity are often necessary more often.
A farsighted person always tenses his or her inner eye muscles to see, so they must be temporarily relaxed in order to make a correct diagnosis of the degree of ametropia. For this purpose, eye drops are injected into the eye by the ophthalmologist. The drops (also called mydriatic drops) also dilate the pupil at the same time, so that the ophthalmologist can also very well control the back of the eye (the retina).
It is important that the drops are allowed to work for at least 30 minutes. Therefore, you should allow enough time for the appointment and, if possible, organize a companion for the way back. As a rule, farsightedness in children is corrected with glasses.
A physical “converging lens” (plus lens in plus diopters) is used, which enables a sharp image to be formed on the retina. Even in cases of severe farsightedness, these lenses are no longer as thick as they used to be, but thanks to a special cut they are thinner, lighter and therefore more comfortable to wear. For adults: With pronounced farsightedness, the vision becomes significantly better when using contact lenses than when wearing glasses (no restriction of peripheral vision, i.e. the field of vision), therefore contact lenses should be preferred here. For some years now, laser surgery (refractive surgery) has made it possible to achieve relaxed and better vision even in cases of farsightedness. Other topics that might interest you: All topics on ophthalmology under: Ophthalmology A-Z
- Long-sightedness
- Long-sightedness: Laser
- Long-sightedness: symptoms
- Long-sightedness
- Lasik
- Dry eyes
- Myopia
- Astigmatism
- Myopia
