Presbyopia

The telltale symptom of presbyopia is blurred vision while reading, using a mobile phone, or doing anything that requires near vision^3^ especially in poor lighting.

If uncorrected, other symptoms include^3^:
• Eye strain
• Headaches

During a sight test, the optometrist will place a series of lenses in front of the eye until a clear focus is obtained as part of a normal sight test. This will include the tests required to measure myopia, hyperopia and astigmatism. 

With presbyopia, additional positive power is then added where the strength of this prescription normally correlates to age e.g. somebody new to presbyopia would expect to have a near vision addition of +0.75 dioptres, whereas for an adapted presbyope it can be +2.00 dioptres, although this can vary from person to person.  

Treatment options then can then be:

• Spectacles^3^- The most common treatment for presbyopic eyes. The spectacle lenses required can be made in many forms. These include single vision, bifocals or varifocal lenses.
• Contact Lenses^3^- Now becoming more and more popular are soft multifocal lenses. These are generally suitable for a wide range of prescriptions, however may not be suitable for prescriptions with astigmatism of over 1.00dioptre.
• Gas permeable designs can also correct for presbyopia and offer a good solution for higher astigmatic presbyopic prescriptions.

A note about ready-readers: These are magnifying spectacles that are easily available at most large retailers and supermarket^4^. These assume that both eyes require the same amount of magnification to see near print. This is not often the case, so it is very important to see an optometrist for a full sight test if any symptoms of presbyopia are noticed.