Another common word for myopia is nearsightedness, or difficulty being able to focus on objects that are far away from us. But that's NOT the whole story with myopia, and that's a huge part of the problem!
A big part of the PATHOLOGICAL process involved in myopia is elongation of the eyeball and the resultant increased risk of eye disease, especially as we get older. The most common and potentially devastating disease processes associated with myopia are retinal detachment, glaucoma, and myopic macular degeneration. These disease processes can cause significant loss of vision or even blindness.
So - this is the key concept that we need to understand - myopia is MORE than just a focusing problem! It is in fact associated with very significant disease processes of the eye over our lifetime that can cause loss of vision or blindness.
Now - I don't mean to create hysteria over patients being or becoming myopic. Not every patient who is myopic will develop an eye pathology! However, just as in any scenario in life, an ounce of prevention can be worth a pound of cure - especially because for some of these pathologies relating to myopia - although there are treatments, there are no complete cures. So ... reducing risk is the best we can do, just like when we wear seatbelts in our cars, or when we use safety glasses while operating power tools.
A big part of the PATHOLOGICAL process involved in myopia is elongation of the eyeball and the resultant increased risk of eye disease, especially as we get older. The most common and potentially devastating disease processes associated with myopia are retinal detachment, glaucoma, and myopic macular degeneration. These disease processes can cause significant loss of vision or even blindness.
So - this is the key concept that we need to understand - myopia is MORE than just a focusing problem! It is in fact associated with very significant disease processes of the eye over our lifetime that can cause loss of vision or blindness.
Now - I don't mean to create hysteria over patients being or becoming myopic. Not every patient who is myopic will develop an eye pathology! However, just as in any scenario in life, an ounce of prevention can be worth a pound of cure - especially because for some of these pathologies relating to myopia - although there are treatments, there are no complete cures. So ... reducing risk is the best we can do, just like when we wear seatbelts in our cars, or when we use safety glasses while operating power tools.
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