Not every person can boast that he has good eyesight. Most often there is some kind of pathology. For example, it can be hypermetropic astigmatism, which is a deviation of vision due to farsightedness.
In some cases, it can be completely asymptomatic, but it also happens that the pathology causes a headache and irritability. This type of astigmatism is very rare in both eyes, most often affecting only one. Let's try to understand the causes of the disease and how to treat it.
Reasons
The cornea and lens in an eye with normal vision are spherical. The ray of light refracted by them is fixed on the retina in one place. But if the eye is with astigmatism, then the beam in this case will form two points, not one. As a result, the image doubles, becomes blurry and distorted.
Thus, hyperopic astigmatism occurs for two reasons:
- deformation of the lens;
- changing the shape of the cornea.
BIt is currently not fully established why this is happening. Scientists suggest that the deformation of the lens is a congenital anomaly of development and during life it is formed very rarely. Also, the shape of the cornea can change due to scarring, such as after trauma or surgery.
Very often farsightedness has a weak degree, up to 0.5 diopters. This is not considered a violation, a person does not feel any discomfort, and this also does not affect the quality of vision.
Types of pathology
- Simple astigmatism - in this case, one meridian of the eye has normal vision, and farsightedness occurs in the other.
- Complex astigmatism - farsightedness occurs in both meridians of the eye, that is, the focal points are located behind the retina.
Both complex hypermetropic astigmatism and simple astigmatism arise from the fact that the cornea has a non-spherical shape. Much less often, this causes an abnormal curvature of the lens.
Also, astigmatism can be of direct and reverse type. The basis of division in this case is based on the power of refraction in the main meridians. If it is stronger in the vertical meridian, it is a direct type. But if a stronger refraction occurs in the horizontal, this is hyperopic astigmatism of the reverse type.
Symptoms
This visual impairment can manifest itself in different ways, and it depends on the degree of its severity.
If farsighted astigmatism is mild, its symptoms are almost invisible. Man does not paynotice that his eyesight is beginning to deteriorate. Most often, a mild degree of this pathology is detected during preventive examinations.
The average degree of astigmatism is manifested as follows: blurred vision occurs, which is accompanied by double vision, headache or dizziness. A person cannot concentrate on performing work related to eye strain. It is at this time that people are forced to see a doctor.
Severe astigmatism is characterized by severe symptoms. Most often, it begins to double in the eyes very much, and blurred vision becomes more pronounced. There is pain in the eyes, headaches, sometimes irritability, nausea. During the examination, the doctor notes a strong deterioration in visual acuity.
Treatment of hyperopic astigmatism
This pathology is treated in two ways:
- conservative;
- prompt.
If farsightedness has a slight degree, as well as in the absence of concomitant diseases (asthenopia, strabismus), treatment may not be carried out, since in this case the quality of vision practically does not deteriorate. If these diseases are detected, the correction is carried out without fail. It lies in the fact that a person is prescribed special glasses with spherical lenses. They should be worn all the time or only to perform some kind of work. Also, the correction involves wearing contact lenses.
But it should be said that astigmatism cannot be cured with lenses or glasses. They only help to correct it in order to eliminate the discomfort associated with such visual impairment. Astigmatism is treated only by surgery, and mainly it is laser vision correction.
Surgical treatment
Modern ophthalmology eliminates astigmatism through surgery.
- Laser thermokeratoplasty. This type of vision correction consists in the fact that point burns are applied to the peripheral zone of the cornea at certain points with a laser. This contributes to the contraction of collagen fibers, due to which the cornea changes its shape. At the periphery, it becomes flatter, and in the central part it becomes convex, which leads to improved vision.
- Thermokeratocoagulation. It is carried out in the same way as laser thermokeratoplasty, only in this case the burns are applied with a high temperature needle.
- Hypermetropic laser keratomileusis. Currently, this method of treatment is considered the safest and most effective. This laser vision correction helps to get rid of moderate and severe astigmatism. It is carried out as follows: a small flap of tissue is cut out in the area of the upper layer of the cornea and pushed aside. Thanks to this incision, they reach the middle layers of the cornea on its periphery. A small area of the middle layer is evaporated with a laser, and the flap is returned to its place. This technique corrects the shape of the cornea, changes its curvature, and vision quickly improves.being restored.
If there are any reasons that do not allow these treatments, then operations such as lens removal, phakic intraocular lens implantation, keratoplasty are performed.
Hypermetropic astigmatism in children
Such a visual impairment in babies under one year old is considered a normal (physiological) phenomenon. But in older children, this pathology manifests itself in the same way as in adults. The child's complaints in this case are vague: burning in the eyes, fatigue, headache, unwillingness to draw, read and write.
Often this disease is congenital and passed from parent to child. Therefore, if someone in the family suffers from astigmatism, be sure to show the baby to an ophthalmologist as early as possible. With untimely treatment, after a while the child may develop strabismus.
Correction of pathology in children
If hyperopic astigmatism is mild, then it does not need special correction. Most often, a child is registered with a dispensary and special exercises are selected for the eyes.
If the disease is much more pronounced, then the doctor selects special glasses or lenses for a small patient. Glasses should be selected only by an experienced doctor, their lenses must have a different degree of refraction, therefore they are made individually.
Hypermetropic astigmatism in children can beprevent if as early as possible to teach them to properly distribute the load on the eyes.
Conclusion
Hypermetropic astigmatism is a serious eye pathology that can only be treated surgically. To prevent this disease from progressing, the specialist prescribes the wearing of special glasses or contact lenses, which is why it is so important to see a doctor in time.
