Myopia

Myopia, also known as nearsightedness or shortsightedness, is a condition of the eyes in which nearby objects are clear and distant objects appear blurred. Almost a third of people in the United States experience some degree of nearsightedness.  Anatomically, myopia means that your eye has too much focusing power for distance objects.  Earlier in life, this is usually caused by having a longer-than-average eye (just 1 millimeter longer causes a minus 3 glasses prescription).  It can also be caused later in life by cataracts (cataract growth often causes increase in focusing power).

Treatment of Myopia

Myopia can be corrected with contacts, glasses, and LASIK.  For patients with cataracts, myopia can also be corrected as part of cataract surgery.