Myopia of an average degree: how to treat? The consequences of myopia

The eyes are the mirror of the soul. If the mirror does not show what we would like, it greatly complicates life. Poor vision has become a problem of the 21st century. But at the same time, the modern achievements of science help solve these problems.

What is myopia?

Myopia is a disease of the organs of vision, characterized by a decrease in a person's ability to see objects that are far away. The people often call this disease myopia. In this case, the patient retains the ability to see objects located nearby.

With this visual impairment, the image of the object is formed not on the retina, but in front of it. A person suffering from myopia, in the distance sees objects blurry and fuzzy. The strength of the blur depends on what degree of myopia he has.

Classification

The decrease in visual acuity due to myopia is divided into several degrees:

1. Myopia of a weak degree - the violation is up to 3 diopters. The examination of objects located far away is problematic for the patient; those objects that are nearby do not cause any difficulties.
2. Myopia of moderate degree - impaired vision from 3 to 6 diopters. To distinguish objects in the distance, a person needs special corrective means. The near vision function will also be impaired, but it can clearly distinguish objects at a distance of 30 cm.
3. High degree myopia is a violation of eye refraction from 6 diopters and more. Objects located near, as well as in the distance, are poorly visible and blurry. A person sees clearly only what is in close proximity. Such myopia needs constant correction with glasses or lenses.

Moderate myopia

Despite the seemingly relatively small deviations in visual acuity, moderate myopia of the eyes already greatly affects the change in the fundus, provoking many complications. Such myopia must be corrected when the eyes look into the distance. Otherwise, due to constantly arising tension, the disease will begin to develop further.

Causes of moderate myopia

The causes of myopia can be divided into congenital and acquired.

Congenital causes:

1. Heredity - if the parents of the child suffer from myopia both, then their baby is 50% likely to be born with this problem. Therefore, if only one parent, then 25%, but that is also a lot.
2. Congenital causes, such as muscle weakness, abnormal eyeball size from birth. Such deviations occur even if no one in the family has had them before.
3. High intracranial and intraocular pressure. This reason for the development of moderate myopia can also be attributed to acquired causes, since it does not always arise precisely from birth.

Causes of Acquired Myopia:

1. Non-observance of work and rest standards in front of a computer, tablet, TV. A long stay in front of the screen keeps the eyes in constant tension, which negatively affects vision.
2. Reading books and working in dim lighting, viewing gadgets in the dark.
3. Vitamin starvation of the organs of vision. The best way not to get sick is to prevent the disease. If the eyes do not systematically receive the necessary vitamins, vision will gradually begin to fall.
4. Often people who begin to lose their vision do not go to a specialist for the purpose of diagnosis, but go and buy glasses or lenses on their own, not knowing the true current “minus”. Wrong selection of correction tools will cause constant eye strain and worsening of their condition.
5. The cause of moderate myopia can also be past brain injuries.
6. Some infectious diseases give a complication in the form of worsening visual acuity.

Symptoms of myopia

The development of a disease such as myopia can not be noticed right away, since vision deteriorates gradually and many people attribute changes in the perception of objects to account of long work at the computer or fatigue.

Symptoms of moderate myopia:

1. Blurred image of objects located far and at a distance of up to 30 cm.
2. Objects located directly "under the nose", the patient is still able to see without correction.
3. Squinting eyes. When the eyelids are squinted, the sharpness of the image is enhanced, since central vision is increased by reducing the pupil area.
4. In some cases, the eye protrudes due to an increase in the axis of the eyeball.

Diagnosis of moderate myopia

Having noticed one or more of the above symptoms, a person turns to an ophthalmologist. Only a qualified specialist can make such a diagnosis as moderate myopia.

He will hold:

1. Special ophthalmological tests that determine visual acuity.
2. Inspection of the structure of the eye.
3. Eye refraction studies.
4. Procedures for direct ophthalmoscopy or biomicroscopy of the eye are performed if it is necessary to identify changes that appear on the retina.
5. Ultrasound of the eye, if necessary, measuring the axis of the eye and the size of the lens.
6. Eye length measurement.
   

Myopia and pregnancy

Myopia is not a contraindication to pregnancy, but there are a number of risks associated with this. If the fundus with pathologies and the disease progresses, then during childbirth there is a danger of rupture or detachment of the retina. This will result in significant impairment or complete loss of vision.

For this reason, the outcome of pregnancy with moderate myopia is most often a cesarean section. The final decision in this matter will be with the gynecologist who led the pregnancy.

Myopia in children

Myopia is rapidly becoming younger, according to statistics, 75% of cases in childhood occur in 9-12 years. The types of disease are the same as in adults. But there are reasons that are observed only at a young age:

1. Myopia often affects premature babies.
2. Eye injuries received at birth.
3. A sharply increased load on the organs of vision during preparation for school.
4. Frequent infectious diseases and their complications.
5. The rapid growth of the body and active hormonal changes.

While the child cannot speak, it is not easy to identify deviations in the visual apparatus. For the first time, an ophthalmologist examines a newborn in a maternity hospital, but if there are any troubling moments later, you should immediately consult a doctor. Children's diseases are better treatable the sooner they are discovered. You can talk about moderate myopia in both eyes if:

1. At 3 months, the baby cannot focus on a bright object.
2. At about 1 year old, the child, trying to examine the toy, squints, brings it too close to his face, often blinks.
3. Up to 6 months, the baby has a moment when the eyes look a little in different directions. If strabismus has not passed by six months, parents are advised to consult a doctor, as strabismus and myopia often accompany each other in infancy.
4. At an older age, the child will be able to complain about the fact that he sees objects poorly or experiences headaches, easily gets tired, feels discomfort in his eyes.

If the child does not recognize myopia in time, this can cause a lag in overall development, poor performance, and the formation of complexes.

Non-surgical correction

In the treatment of moderate myopia, correction by optical means occupies a leading position. This happens due to the fact that the deviation from the norm of vision is still small to this extent and it is easy to correct it using this method. It is also recommended for children and the elderly.

Optical correction advantages:

1. Speed ​​- a good specialist in 10 minutes will pick up ideal lenses or glasses, teach them how to use and store.
2. Painless - glasses and lenses with proper selection do not bring any pain and discomfort in the eyes.
3. Price - of course, one can argue with this plus. The price for packing lenses is 20 times lower than the price for laser surgery, but a new pair of lenses is needed once every 2 weeks or a month. Laser surgery is done 1 time for a lifetime. Accordingly, everyone will make a choice for himself.
   

Cons of optical correction can be divided between glasses and lenses. Children's and teenage complexes about wearing glasses are still alive, no matter how fashionable glasses become. For this reason alone, many young people suffer and do not wear them.

The main reason why people are forced to abandon the use of lenses is allergies and eye sensitivity. They also can not be used in the presence of infectious diseases of the organs of vision. Some people in contact lenses are frightened off by the moment they put on; they think that it hurts and is scary.

Laser correction

If the patient is tired of using optical correction methods, then a laser operation will help him. Myopia of moderate degree is easily corrected by this method, in contrast to the same disease of a weak and high degree. This procedure is recommended for those people who have a deviation from -1 to -15 diopters. The recommended age for surgery is from 18 to 55 years.

The laser changes the shape of the cornea, and the image of the object will again fall on the retina, as it should be.

Pros of laser correction:

1. Permanent result - unlike glasses and lenses, the laser will correct vision permanently, it will be good in all weather and temperature conditions.
2. The speed of the operation - together with the preparation, it takes 20 minutes. Immediately after a successful operation, the patient can go home.
3. Painless - during the operation, an anesthetic is used. During rehabilitation, dryness and burning in the eyes are possible. In this case, you should immediately contact your doctor, he will prescribe moisturizing or soothing drops.
4. Guarantee - the patient will receive perfect vision, if initially he did not have any deviations and contraindications.

Surgical correction

In some cases, when the cornea of ​​the eye is too thin, the age exceeds the upper bar and, in some diseases, laser correction cannot be done. The question arises, how to treat moderate myopia in this case?

In this case, alternative methods of surgical intervention may help:

1. Replacement of the lens - the own lens is replaced with an artificial one through a micro incision on the eyeball.
2. Phakic lens implantation - a silicone lens is inserted inside the eye, preserving its own crystalline lens. The operation helps those who have a thin cornea of ​​the eye or other eye diseases in which it is impossible to make a correction with a laser.
3. Corneal plastic surgery - the donor cornea is transplanted and imitates the necessary shape. This operation restores and increases the transparency of the cornea and visual acuity.

The consequences of myopia

With advanced myopia of medium and high degree, serious complications develop:

1. Deviation in vision in only one eye is called amblyopia. Correction of such a deviation is not possible with standard optical correction tools. It manifests itself with prolonged myopia as a result of damage to the structure of the eye. In order to cure amblyopia, you must first eliminate the original factor.
2. Cataract - with prolonged myopia, the ability of the ciliary muscle to contract decreases, there is a violation of the circulation of aqueous humor. The function of this moisture is to feed the lens and regulate the metabolism in it. If metabolic disorders occur, clouding zones form in the lens. This effect is eliminated by the surgical method, by replacing the lens.
3. Diverting strabismus occurs most often with myopia. In this case, the pupils of the eyes look towards the temples. When a person looks into the distance, the pupils of his eyes diverge somewhat to improve focus, while approaching the subject, the eyes come closer. The distance at which a person can clearly focus both eyes is limited. A constant tension of the eye muscles occurs, due to which pathological changes develop in the organs of vision over time. Before undertaking the correction of strabismus, it is necessary to eliminate the cause that caused it.
4. With myopia, the eyeball increases in size. The retina is very sensitive and inelastic; its regeneration is weak. The retina, with an increase in the eyeball, stretches, there is a nutritional disorder of the nerve endings, and pathological processes develop in them. If myopia progresses further, the retina may detach from the wall.
5. With an advanced degree of myopia, the blood vessels of the membranes of the eye are damaged. This leads to retinal hemorrhages and visual impairment.

Disease prevention

Before the question arises, “how to treat moderate myopia?”, It is recommended to study the information on which methods of prevention are effective or will help with a newly starting disease?

1. Gymnastics for the eyes after every half hour of stress on the organs of vision.
2. Only proper lighting - you cannot work or read in dim or jumping light.
3. It is strongly not recommended to read in transport or on the go.
4. Proper balanced nutrition with the obligatory presence of vitamins and minerals in it.
5. The distance between the eyes and the working surface is at least 30 cm.
6. As a prevention and reduction of eye strain, elimination of dryness and irritation, various drops are prescribed. With moderate myopia, medications based on vitamins and useful dietary supplements are prescribed. Their regular use can significantly improve the condition of the visual apparatus.

Myopia of moderate degree is a serious deviation from normal vision, but with the surgical intervention of a doctor and correctly selected correction, it can be easily corrected. Like any disease, you should not start it and wait for the appearance of complications.