Presbyopia

The common vision loss known as presbyopia is a natural part of aging – but Henry Ford can help.

Presbyopia occurs as a result of aging, when the natural lens inside the eye loses its ability to change shape, making it difficult for your eyes to focus on near objects. Presbyopia treatment focuses on correcting this vision loss.

Who develops presbyopia?

Presbyopia eventually affects everyone, including those who are nearsighted, farsighted, have cataracts or who have had perfect vision most of their life.

What are the options for presbyopia treatment?

Traditionally, presbyopia has been treated through corrective eyewear, such as reading glasses, prescription glasses, bifocals or contact lenses. Unfortunately, two common procedures used to correct vision – LASIK and PRK – cannot be used to correct presbyopia. However, for those who would prefer not to wear glasses or contacts, Henry Ford offers two advanced procedures for presbyopia treatment:

• Refractive lens exchange: During this procedure, which is available using the same advanced technology as laser cataract surgery, Henry Ford surgeons exchange a presbyopic, pre-cataractous lens with an intraocular lens (IOL) implant.
• Monovision: This presbyopia treatment uses special contact lenses or intraocular implants to correct your vision and help you to see at all distances. Monovision works by making your dominant eye responsible for focusing on objects at a distance and your non-dominant eye responsible for seeing objects that are near to you.

At Henry Ford, patients come first.

The Henry Ford Department of Ophthalmology is committed to providing our patients with compassionate, personalized care. We feature the most advanced treatments in eye care and are dedicated to vision research – always staying at the forefront of innovation. A leader in Michigan, as well as one of the largest ophthalmology practices in the United States, we treat more than 55,000 patients per year at 12 locations throughout southeast Michigan. In addition, our team works closely with Henry Ford Medical Group physicians in other departments, providing multidisciplinary, coordinated care for those patients who need it.