What is Nearsightedness vs Farsightedness

Almost everyone has some sort of eye prescription, it just depends if the prescription is required to allow us to see clearly or give us more comfortable vision.

Nearsightedness (myopia) is when the eye has difficulty seeing in the distance. This is the most common cause of children having difficulty seeing the board at school or objects in the distance. The patient will be able to see clearly up close. This requires a ‘minus’ prescription.

Farsightedness (hyperopia) is when the eye has to ‘focus’ to see clearly. The eye has so much focussing power and can operate perfectly normal when the amount of hyperopia is small. When we see objects up close our eyes have to focus on the near object. Since with hyperopia we are focussing already to see clearly, there is an extra level of focussing required to see clearly up close. Some patients will require a ‘plus’ prescription to help them with eyestrain and to see more clearly.