What Is Refractive Errors?

Are you nearsighted, farsighted, or have astigmatism? That's a refractive error, caused by an irregular-shaped cornea or lens. Learn how it's treated.

*Health information sourced from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and MedlinePlus, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine. co-pay.com is not affiliated with or endorsed by the U.S. government.

The cornea and lens of your eye helps you focus. Refractive errors are vision problems that happen when the shape of the eye keeps you from focusing well. The cause could be the length of the eyeball (longer or shorter), changes in the shape of the cornea, or aging of the lens.

Four common refractive errors are:

  • Myopia, or nearsightedness - clear vision close up but blurry in the distance
  • Hyperopia, or farsightedness - clear vision in the distance but blurry close up
  • Presbyopia - inability to focus close up as a result of aging
  • Astigmatism - focus problems caused by the cornea

The most common symptom is blurred vision. Other symptoms may include double vision, haziness, glare or halos around bright lights, squinting, headaches, or eye strain.

Glasses or contact lenses can usually correct refractive errors. Laser eye surgery may also be a possibility.

NIH: National Eye Institute

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