What Level of Astigmatism Require Glasses

Being diagnosed with astigmatism is normal. Luckily, glasses are here to aid our vision. Astigmatism is a common vision problem to have as it is caused by an irregular-shaped cornea or an irregularly shaped part of your eye. With this irregularity, how the light rays pass through changes, causing blurry vision and refractive errors. Glasses can help restore clear vision.

Astigmatism is normally combined with farsightedness or nearsightedness and can develop as early as infancy and progress throughout one’s life. Let’s first go over what astigmatism is. Your local eye clinic probably uses that word often, but what does it really mean? Here’s a quick definition:

If you have Astigmatism symptoms, it is important to understand how to correct your condition with glasses. Depending on whether your symptoms are bothering you or if you are free of other refractive errors, vision correction may not be necessary, but regular eye exams at Look Optometry are always needed.

A good time to get glasses for astigmatism is when your vision is blurry or you are experiencing eye strain. To balance the refraction of light, your eye doctor may prescribe cylinder-shaped lenses. Single-vision lenses are most common.

An optometrist should be contacted if you notice troubling or different symptoms after wearing corrective eyewear to determine if you need a new prescription.

Let’s look at two types of Astigmatism.

Corneal Astigmatism: The most commonly occurring form of astigmatism is corneal astigmatism, characterized by an irregular cornea. Your contact lens touches the cornea (the surface of your eye) and the cornea is where light passes through first as it makes its way to the eye.

Lenticular astigmatism: The second type is Lenticular astigmatism resulting from distortion of the crystalline lens. As light enters the eye through the pupil, the lens helps focus the light. Through the lens, light passes to the retina, the optic nerve, and eventually to the brain.

Astigmatism requires corrective lenses depending on the severity. Here at Look Optometry, we offer adult eye exams and children’s eye exams so we can see what fits your needs for eye care. We take care of the whole family, so you don’t need to worry! Specialized lenses can correct astigmatism effectively.

Astigmatism does not always require the use of a glasses prescription. A person can have slight astigmatism and still see clearly. Astigmatism glasses, which include different types of lenses and coatings, can help those with more significant astigmatism. Similar to the rest of the body, the eyes change over time, so regular eye checks with your local optometrist are of importance.

Also, in some cases, corrective surgery or orthokeratology (a treatment that uses hard, rigid contact lenses to correct the irregular curvature of the cornea temporarily) can be used to correct vision instead of glasses.

Orthokeratology is the process of wearing gas permeable contact lenses overnight in order to correct refractive problems associated with corneas. By gently reshaping the cornea while sleeping, orthokeratology contact lenses result in improved vision the next morning. Patients with a low level of astigmatism are most suitable for this type of treatment. It is not required to wear the orthokeratology contact lenses during the day as they are only intended to be worn at night.

In short, it’s best to understand your level of Astigmatism with a professional so that they can better guide you to the next step as you might need to wear glasses or possibly undergo another process.

In most cases, your optometrist will let you order your glasses through their clinic once your astigmatism is checked, as glasses correct astigmatism effectively.

While this is not always the cheapest option, it may be convenient because you can return to your doctor to ensure the lenses fit correctly and are positioned correctly for your eyes. Here at Look Optometry, we always put your specialized and individualized needs first.

Retail optometry locations

The sale of glasses is offered in many towns at standalone stores. Optometry clinics are also located in large retailers like Walmart. Glasses are usually available at these retail locations in a wide range of prescriptions and astigmatisms. These locations also offer various options for astigmatism correction.

Aside from blurry vision, astigmatism can also cause headaches and eye strain. Most likely, these are caused by squinting and straining to see clearly. Distorted or blurred vision is a common symptom of many conditions. If you notice new or worsening symptoms, schedule an eye exam with your eye doctor. During the evaluation of your vision, be sure to inform your eye doctor of any symptoms you are experiencing.

Now that you know what astigmatism is, it makes sense to ask: what can I do about it if I have Astigmatism symptoms such as:

Astigmatism is often misunderstood to be treated only with glasses or contact lenses. You can avoid glasses and contacts with laser vision correction procedures if you don’t want to rely on them to see clearly. Laser vision correction adjusts the pupil’s focus by reshaping the cornea with precision laser technology.

An evaluation by an experienced Optometrist is the best way to learn what treatment option may be right for you if you suffer from astigmatism or other vision issues.

Now that you have an idea of what level of astigmatism requires glasses, you can be sure that contacting your local Optometrist to get an Eye Exam in Surrey will be the next step to your eye care. Get in touch!

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