What Is Astigmatism? ?
February 14, 2010 by admin
Filed under FAQ on advance for astigmatism
I’ve failed my school eye test twice and so today I went to the doctor and one eye is bad, the other is twice as bad and so I have to get glasses. The doctor said I have astigmatism? Can somebody tell me what that means? Thanks! (:
Astigmatism is usually discovered during routine eye exams when your doctor checks your eye’s refraction and visual acuity using standard eye charts. Refraction is the ability to properly focus light rays on the retina and can be measured in a number of ways. Some doctors will ask a series of questions and conduct a visual acuity test, while others will use a keratoscope or keratometer to measure the curvature and shape of your cornea to determine your degree of astigmatism.
Astigmatism is a condition where the cornea has an irregular shape that causes problems with vision. The cornea, the clear covering of the lens and iris, serves as a protection to the eye and helps transmit light thru the eye. The cornea is normally spherical in shape, but those with astigmatism may have their cornea more oval shaped. This oval shaping causes light to scatter instead of focusing to a single point as it passes thru the cornea and results in blurred vision.
Astigmatism is characterized by distortions in your field of vision, often noted as the blurring of lines. Astigmatism is also a common cause of eyestrain and headaches, especially with prolonged reading or lengthy sessions at the computer. Astigmatism causes blurring of your vision at all distances, so objects close up and even those far away will be blurred. Often present at birth, astigmatism affects many people, although not all cases are severe enough to require corrective treatment.
Astigmatism can be corrected thru the use of corrective lenses, involving either glasses or contact lenses. Astigmatism can also be corrected with refractive eye surgery.
it means that your eyes are oval/almond shaped instead of circular. so, your eyes are bent and cant adjust to well. i might sujest looking it up on wedMD or wikipedia, just to make sure.