Astigmatism

For most people, astigmatism is a common refractive error that can be managed effectively with appropriate vision correction. Small changes over time are very common and normally no cause for concern.

Progressive changes in astigmatism can sometimes be associated with conditions affecting the cornea, so regular eye examinations are important, particularly if your vision or prescription changes noticeably.

It can. In lower light, uncorrected astigmatism may make headlights, streetlights and other bright light sources appear blurred, stretched or surrounded by glare or halos. This can make night driving more visually demanding.

Correcting your prescription with appropriate glasses or contact lenses can improve visual clarity. If you notice increasing difficulty driving at night, an eye examination can check whether astigmatism or another change is responsible.

It depends on the degree and type of astigmatism. Some people with mild astigmatism may achieve satisfactory vision with certain standard contact lenses.

Others require toric contact lenses, which are specifically designed to correct astigmatism. An optometrist can assess which lens design is most appropriate for your prescription and eye shape.

There is no single best eye surgery for everyone with astigmatism. LASIK may be appropriate for some patients, while PRK or a lens-based procedure may be more suitable for others.

The recommendation depends on your prescription, corneal thickness and shape, age, eye health and lifestyle. The purpose of your consultation is to identify the safest and most appropriate option for your individual eyes.

LASIK can correct astigmatism in many suitable patients by reshaping the cornea. It is more accurate to describe this as correcting astigmatism rather than guaranteeing a permanent cure, as natural changes to your prescription can still occur later in life.

A detailed assessment is required to determine whether LASIK is suitable for your individual eyes.

Yes, laser eye surgery can correct many cases of astigmatism. The laser reshapes specific areas of the cornea so that light focuses more evenly onto the retina.

Suitability depends on the type and amount of astigmatism, corneal measurements, prescription stability and overall eye health.

Astigmatism can usually be corrected effectively, although cured is not always the most accurate term. Glasses and contact lenses correct your vision while you wear them, and for suitable patients laser eye surgery can reshape the cornea to correct the astigmatism itself.

Your eyes can still change naturally over time, so no treatment can guarantee that your prescription will remain exactly the same throughout life.

You can be born with astigmatism, and genetics may influence the shape of your cornea.

Astigmatism can also develop or change over time. Eye injury, surgery and certain corneal conditions can sometimes alter the shape of the eye and produce astigmatism later in life.

Astigmatism is very common, and many people have at least a small degree of it.

Mild astigmatism may have little effect on vision and may not require treatment. Stronger astigmatism is more likely to cause noticeable blur, distortion or visual discomfort.

With little or no astigmatism, light is focused evenly onto the retina, producing a sharper image.

With astigmatism, differences in the curvature of the cornea or lens cause light to focus unevenly. This can result in blurred or distorted vision at near, intermediate or far distances.

Astigmatism does not look exactly the same for everybody. You may notice that objects appear slightly blurred, stretched or distorted.

Lights can sometimes appear less defined, particularly at night, and bright points of light may produce glare, halos or streaking. The effect depends on the strength and orientation of your astigmatism.