In a normal eye, light images are focused directly onto the retina for clear vis ion.

However, in an eye with a refractive disorder, such as nearsightedness, far sightedness, or astigmatism, these light rays do not focus properly on the retin a, creating blurred or distorted vision. The refractive disorders, or errors, me ntioned above can be corrected with the use of prescription glasses, contact len ses, or refractive eye surgery. Nearsightedness, or myopia, refers to a visual condition of the eye in which clo se up images appear clearly, but far away images appear blurred. Nearsightedness is normally caused by the curvature of the front surface of the eye, or your co rnea, being too steep. This change in corneal shape causes the light rays enteri ng the eye to focus in front of the retina. The steeper the cornea is in relatio n to the retina, the greater the degree of nearsightedness. Myopia is often disc overed in school-age children who report having difficulty seeing the chalkboard . Patients with myopia will notice that their symptoms become progressively wors e through adolescence and stabilize in early adulthood. Nearly 70 million people suffer from nearsightedness in the United States alone, but they achieve normal vision through the use of corrective lenses, either prescription eyeglasses or contact lenses, as prescribed by their eye doctor. Farsightedness is the polar opposite of nearsightedness and affects nearly a fou rth of the population. Farsightedness, also referred to as hyperopia, is caused by the curvature of the cornea being too flat, which results in light rays being focused behind the retina. Farsighted people will have trouble seeing up close, but may also have difficulty seeing far away as well. Hyperopia will often go u nnoticed by a young patient because their natural lens will accommodate or adjus t to increase their eye s focusing ability. However, as they age, their eyes will lo se this ability and the symptoms of blurred vision will become more noticeable. Astigmatism is a condition where the cornea is shaped irregularly. While your co rnea can be either too flat or too steep, indicating a presence of nearsightedne ss or farsightedness, it can also be shaped like a football rather than the smoo th curvature of a basketball. This oblong shape of the cornea causes light rays to enter the eye unevenly and bent unequally resulting in the blurred vision of both near and far objects. The common refractive disorders detailed above are just that, common. They can b e easily diagnosed and treated during an eye exam with your optometrist or ophth almologist. However, being aware of the symptoms of myopia, hyperopia and astigm atism can prevent you can causing undue eye strain and headaches because of an u ndiagnosed problem.