[Medical Q&A] Will the degree of astigmatism in adults continue to increase?

Author: Wang Mengyu: The Sixth People's Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine

Reviewer: Wu Qiang, Chief Physician, Shanghai Sixth People's Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University

The amount of astigmatism in adults is usually stable, but some changes may occur in certain circumstances.

Normally, astigmatism tends to stabilize in adulthood and does not change as much as it did in childhood. This is because the shape of the cornea and lens does not change much in adults. However, in some cases, the degree may still change.

(1) Not wearing glasses with the appropriate degree.

(2) Bad habits: The astigmatism of teenagers and young people in their twenties is "squeezed", that is, the shape of the cornea changes. The eyelids of young people are relatively "tight". Most people have less tension in the upper and lower eyelids than in the left and right eyelids, and the eyeball is like a horizontal "football". In addition, bad habits such as squinting or sleeping prone can also squeeze the cornea for a long time, squeezing the round "football" into a horizontal "football". The flatter the football, the higher the astigmatism.

(3) Eye diseases: If a young person's astigmatism increases year by year and the annual increase is more than 50 degrees, a corneal topography examination is needed to rule out diseases such as keratoconus.

(4) Eye trauma or certain eye surgeries (such as corneal surgery, cataract surgery, etc.) may change the shape of the cornea and thus affect the degree of astigmatism.

(5) As you age, the lens of your eye may undergo some changes, which may also cause slight changes in the amount of astigmatism.

Therefore, patients with astigmatism should undergo regular eye examinations even in adulthood to monitor changes in visual acuity and astigmatism.