Whether you have myopia (nearsightedness), hyperopia (farsightedness), astigmatism or have lived glasses free throughout your youth, everyone will develop a need for reading glasses sometime in their 40’s. This is due to a condition called presbyopia. Presbyopia occurs as the lens in the eye loses its flexibility with age and is unable to automatically change focus between different ranges.

The Greek word for “aging eye,” presbyopia is the most prevalent eye condition in America, affecting most people after the age of 40 and everyone by age 51. Presbyopia causes near vision to fade with age, making it difficult to see things up-close. An estimated 90 million baby-boomers either have presbyopia or will develop the condition within 10 years. Early symptoms of presbyopia include difficulty reading very small letters such as on medicine bottles or reading in poor light situations. This progresses naturally as you get older to the constant dependency on glasses for reading and even for the computer.

Struggling to read and do hobby work, or relying on magnifying reading glasses for even the most mundane daily tasks, such as checking a watch, is no longer the lifestyle you must settle for. Now, thanks to new advancements in eye care technology, qualified patients can undergo simple laser or implant procedures to restore their reading vision to that of their youth.

LASIK – Monovision (Blended Vision)

In this LASIK procedure, the dominant eye is corrected for distance vision and the nondominant eye is corrected more for near/intermediate vision. Using both eyes together, the brain blends the images to give an improved depth of focus. After Monovision LASIK, it may take several weeks for you to adapt to the new vision.   And like other presbyopia correcting procedures, Monovision LASIK is not meant to completely replace reading glasses, but to improve your nearpoint function in general.

Refractive Lens Exchange

Refractive Lens Exchange, like cataract surgery, is a procedure in which the natural lens is replaced with an artificial one, such as an accommodating, wavefront-adjusted or multi-focal lens. Because it is a more invasive procedure, it is used to treat only severe nearsightedness or farsightedness.