What Are the Causes of Hypermetropia?

The condition commonly known as farsightedness is more correctly termed hypermetropia. This problem usually occurs due to imperfect shaping of the eyeball or the lens, causing an inability to focus on objects that are near. This is why those who have hypermetropia are considered to be farsighted. When an object comes closer to the eye, the lens or the cornea loses significant power to be able to focus.

Causes

• There are reported indications that this condition may be genetically inherited. The reason for this conclusion relates to the shape of the eye as a cause for the inability of the lens and cornea to filter an image correctly due to being too short. However, with the exception of a rare genetic disorder related to the eyes called nanophthalmos, no specific gene has been identified that is linked to the onset of hypermetropia.

Other Causes

• There are other identifiable causes of this condition, yet they are also considered to be rare in occurrence. These include diabetes, tumors, microphthalmia (a growth dysfunction during fetus development) and fovea hypoplasia, a condition that affects the blood vessels in the retina. While these conditions may result in hypermetropia, one of the most commonly cited causes of farsightedness is considered to be aging.

Symptoms

• The more common signs that are reported in cases of suspected hypermetropia are unusual watering or tearing of the eyes, a noticeable redness in the eye itself and increased eye strain. These symptoms may all be directly related to a misshapen eyeball or lens. The increased stress on the components of the eye to focus on objects that are close may cause these symptoms to occur. This is especially understandable, as the use of the eye for close observation is generally more needed in daily life, such as in reading or computer use.

Diagnosis

• Diagnosing hypermetropia is generally a part of a routine eye exam. Any abnormality in focus and light refraction will be noticed at this time, more often in the refraction examination. Refraction is the ability of the lens to change incoming light from an object into a recognizable image on the retina. The pupil of the eye will be dilated at times to test the lens' ability to refract light. Any irregularity in this process may be determined to be hypermetropia.

Treatment

• The common method of treatment for this condition is the prescribing of corrective lenses. Convex lenses in the corrective glasses will cause the increased ability for focusing light on the retina. Contact lenses can also be prescribed for these same reasons. Due to the increased use of laser surgery in minor corrective surgeries, the procedure known as Lasik surgery may be performed as an outpatient method of correcting hypermetropia.