What is Myopia?

Nearsightedness (myopia) is variously extended in the world, but there are considerable differences between ethnic and racial groups because hereditary factors play the central role. In the Western Europe and in the USA there is about 25% of individuals aged 12-54 years, who are shortsighted.

Nearsightedness (myopia) is the most common reffractive error, when rays of light entering the eye from a distance brake in front of the retina and blurred vision is creating on the retina. This specific event can occur when:

There are many old and new theories which try to explain the causes of shortsightedness (myopia). In spite of significant scientific effort even now we are not hundred percent sure what is the exact cause behind it. The emphasis is put on various factors such as disproportions in the development and growth of the eye, inferiority of the optic tissue (mainly the sclera), infectious diseases, improper nourishment, excessive eye strain, insufficient illumination but mainly heredity. However, this definitely is not a complete list of possible causes of myopia.

It is not easy to put yourself into the shoes of person with myopia (nearsightedness) and understand his problems. It is true also for experienced ophthalmologist or optometrist. Every person with myopia certainly remembers the precise moment when he found out that he did not see objects at the distance as well as other people. This discovery accompanies him during his whole life. Then his life more or less differs from lives of those who do not suffer from this refractive error depending on the degree of his shortsightedness (myopia). He must accommodate himself to this situation every day, during his whole life. It can bring about stress, higher life expenses (eyeglasses, contact lenses) and inability to exercise some occupations, sometimes even early disability or disharmony in personal life.

At the moment the cause of night myopia (nocturnal myopia) is not entirely known. It is caused to some degree by spherical aberration (due to wide pupil in the dark environment), chromatic aberration (due to large share of short-wave blue green part of the spectrum at dusk) and mental causes - excessive accommodation to compensate for blurry vision.

Parents can feel that it is their child have myopia (nearsightedness), and feel guilty. Most of the claims of cures and treatment for myopia have not been tested. Currently, there is no way of myopia prevention. There are no current study results that change the way nearsightedness is treated. No special diet or exercises are known to prevent or cure myopia.

Myopia (nearsightedness or shortsightedness) can be corrected with eyeglasses, contact lenses, or eye surgery. Eyeglasses are the simplest and safest way to correct nearsightedness. Your eye care professional can prescribe lenses that will correct the problem and help you to see your best.

You may think your child is nearsighted if he or she squints or frowns or holds books or other objects very close to his or her face. Children who have a myopia (shortsightedness) may sit at the front of the classroom or very close to the TV or movie screen. They may not be interested in sports or other activities that require good distance vision.

Myopia definition - also known as nearsightedness or shortsightedness, is a common type of refractive error where close objects appear clearly, but distant objects appear blurry. Myopia develops in eyes that focus images in front of the retina instead of on the retina, which results in blurred vision. This occurs when the eyeball becomes too long and prevents incoming light from focusing directly on the retina. It may also be caused by an abnormal shape of the cornea or lens.