Complications of Myopia

Myopia is widely known as nearsightedness and it occurs when the eye grows longer in its horizontal dimensions. This results in images that are further away appearing out of focus, as the light that enters the eye focuses in front of the retina as opposed to on the retina. Myopia can also occur when the cornea of the eye is more curved. 

While regular myopia results in the inability to focus on objects that are further away, there are greater complications that could occur if myopia is not mitigated. The range of complications that could arise as a result of myopia are mild to severe in nature and these have been listed below. 

1. Difficulty in enjoying day-to-day activities and straining of the eyes

While not a threatening complication, myopia could affect an individual’s ability to enjoy certain activities, such as reading.

Due to the nature of myopia and how it affects the ability to focus on objects that are further away, this could result in an individual straining their eyes in order to better see shapes and objects that are further away. This seemingly benign act of straining one’s eyes could result in headaches and eyestrain issues when prolonged. 

2. Safety concerns 

With the inability to see objects that are further away, an individual may be placing themselves and others at risk, especially in instances such as driving or even crossing the road! 

What is high myopia?

When corrective lenses of -6.0 diopters (or more) is required, a patient is said to have high myopia. This means that the patient runs the risk of getting cataract, in which the lens appears cloudy, or glaucoma wherein the optic nerve gets damaged. Over time, and depending on the severity of either of these complications, visual impairment could occur. 

Another complication of high myopia is degenerative myopia and in this instance, the distance between the cornea and retina increases so much that damaging changes begin to occur in different areas of the eye (such as the optic nerve or sclera, to name a few!).

While the signs of degenerative myopia present themselves in early childhood, scientists have not yet been able to determine the solution to slow down or to altogether eradicate the problem. However, certain additional complications could result due to degenerative myopia (the likes of glaucoma or macular edema – fluid accumulation in the retina) and these secondary complications can indeed be treated. 

Another complication of high myopia that may be present is ‘lazy eye’, where there is reduced vision in just one eye. This is typically the eye that has some developmental anomalies and unless steps are taken to correct this, the affected eye remains with unfocused or blurred vision.

Therefore, while seemingly far reaching, the impacts of the complications of myopia are quite large! An adequate understanding of the harmful effects of myopia may facilitate the urgency with which to manage and mitigate myopia.