Defective eyesight corrections in the age check

Which method is suitable for which life situation

07/18/2014

For a long time, operations that correct defective vision have long been approved by the population. They do not belong to the classic beauty operations but are considered as helpers, if the glasses interfere with everyday life. In addition, with a pair of glasses, a refractive error can only be compensated, but not healed. Some eyesight patients rely on contact lenses, which are not tolerated by some and sometimes interfere with sports activities. The term refractive surgery is a summary of various methods for the surgical correction of refractive errors, such as short-sightedness, hyperopia and astigmatism. There are different possibilities today, which are recommended depending on the life situation.

No age without age
Even though teenagers' suffering is particularly high, ophthalmologists can not correct their ametropia until they reach the age of 18. „Mostly, vision changes and the result of a correction would not last“, explains Dr. Robert Löblich, Medical Director Refractive Surgery and TÜV-certified surgeon in the Artemis Eye Clinic Frankfurt. Even after the onset of adulthood, it is always checked before the operation whether the ametropia is stable.

From the age of 18: LASIK or artificial lenses possible
After the refractive error has not changed over one to two years, an operative correction of the refractive error can be made. The best known method is laser eye correction, LASIK for short. Basically, patients with myopia to minus eight, farsightedness to three, and astigmatism up to about five diopters of the procedure are suitable. Ophthalmologists use a laser to grind the cornea down to a few thousandths of a millimeter. Today, physicians perform Femto-LASIK in almost all patients by default, which is considered very safe and precise. For short or long-sightedness outside the area that can be corrected by LASIK, ophthalmologists can safely resolve this problem by inserting artificial lenses. „These lenses work like a contact lens in the eye. They correct very strong sight defects and are considered proven“, appreciates Löblich. For patients with additional astigmatism toric lenses are available, which can compensate for the short or farsightedness as well as the curvature in one operation.

Ab 45: Multifocal lenses fix presbyopia & Co.
From the age of 45 everyone has to put up with a diminishing sight in the area. For most sufferers a difficult change - some eyeglass wearers then even need several glasses. For over 60 years, ophthalmologists have swapped natural lenses for artificial cataracts. But also to correct vision defects, the body's own lens can be replaced. „Most famous are multifocal lenses, which allow sharp vision at different distances - eyewear for short, wide and presbyopia are therefore usually superfluous“, so Dr. Commendable. These are also available in the case of astigmatism as a toric Kunstlinsenform. For some also offers a so-called monovision LASIK. The eyes are set so that the treated uses one eye for far-sightedness and the other for close-up. Patients considering monovision correction should check to see if they can cope with monovision before engaging with contact lenses. (Pm)