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Astigmatism May Affect Your Night Vision: Know Why And Its Management Options

March 29, 2022

Overview

Astigmatism or cylindrical power is referred to as a condition in which the shape of the cornea or the lens of the eyes become irregular in curvature. This condition prevents the light from focusing evenly on the retina of the eye. In the united states, about every 1 in 3 people are having this problem. This can cause blurry or distorted vision at night. This may result in difficulty in driving at night time. If you have been diagnosed with astigmatism, then there are options to treat it.

What Is Astigmatism?

Astigmatism or cylindrical power is a very common refractive error in which the eye of the person is affected. It can be defined as ovalisation of the shape of either cornea or the lenses in your eye. Because of the imperfection in the curvature of the cornea or lens, it may affect the process of focusing light. It can make your vision blurry and affect the ability to see clearly especially during nighttime.

What Are The Symptoms Of Astigmatism?

These are the symptoms of astigmatism:-

  • Difficulty in seeing at night.
  • Headaches.
  • The blurring of vision.
  • Eyestrain or feeling of discomfort in eyes
  • Squinting to see clearly during driving at night
  • Distortion in vision, especially at night

While the most common and noticeable symptom of astigmatism is blurring of vision at both long and short distances, for some people, the symptoms may not be that much disturbing during the daytime.

What Is The Effect Of Astigmatism On Night Vision?

If you are facing problems in seeing at night, for example, if you have noticed issues like halos around street lights or glare from the headlight of the upcoming vehicles, then that does not mean that you are suffering from astigmatism. At night or in other low light conditions, our pupil dilates and allows more lights to enter the eyes for seeing better. This increases the symptoms of astigmatism and may increase the blurring and night glares. Many other medical conditions like myopia, cataracts, and glaucoma can also lead to these kinds of symptoms.

Effect Of Astigmatism On Driving At Night

All outdoor light sources such as traffic lights, headlights, reflective traffic signal board, neon display boards and brake lights illuminate brightly. This is for the drivers to see clearly during the night. These lights are very important for maintaining safe driving conditions. These artificial lights may cause scattering  of light resulting in glare, haloes, starbursts.

Astigmatism may affect your driving in the following ways:-

  • Fuzzy light beam or glares.
  • Feel of need to squint to focus
  • Streaks of light beams or glares from the headlights of the vehicles
  • Increase of vision-related problems during rain.
  • Lights or other things may look blurry.
  • There may be halos present around the light source.

Treatment Options For Astigmatism Improving Night Vision

Astigmatism may affect your vision quality at night and can progressively get worse over time. Fortunately, several options are available for treating this medical condition. Some of them are listed below:-

  • Eyeglasses: Glasses are an effective way to correct astigmatism. This will help you to look in a better way. The lenses in eyeglasses can correct the other eye problems also.
  • Contact lenses: Contact lenses works in the same way eyeglasses do. They have to be worn every morning after a bath and removed before bedtime. There are many varieties of lenses available. You can choose from soft disposable lenses, hard gas permeable lenses, and extended wear lenses.

Conclusion

Astigmatism can cause blurry vision and can typically affect your seeing ability at night. If you are suffering from this condition, then you may notice that lights look fuzzy, streaky, and there may be the presence of halos around lights. All this may make your driving difficult at night. If you are having fuzzy vision or eyestrain problems, then you must visit an eye specialist.

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