HYPEROPIA

People with hyperopia are able to focus on objects that are further away, but have difficulty focusing on objects which are very close. This is because the eyeball is shorter than normal, which focuses light behind the retina. Unlike myopia, where clear vision can only be achieved with lenses, hyperopes can achieve clear vision by activating their reading muscles (the ciliary body). This creates a burden of additional work, however, which scales with the amount of hyperopia. By using part of their limited muscular ability to see far away, hyperopes have reduced capacity to see clearly up close. This can be particularly confusing with children, who have very strong reading muscles (see Accommodative Disorders below) and may have normal distance vision despite a strong hyperopic prescription. 
Babies are often born with hyperopia but they can usually outgrow the condition as their eyes develop into the correct shape.


Hyperopia can be corrected with eyeglasses or contact lenses. There are also new surgical procedures that can correct hyperopia.