Astigmatism is a common condition that causes blurry vision. It oftentimes comes together with other vision problems, such as farsightedness or nearsightedness. Astigmatism can be corrected with glasses or contact lenses. Laser eye surgery can be another option to provide a correction to astigmatism in addition to glasses or contact lenses.

Spotting the signs of astigmatism

Astigmatism causes refractive errors as either the cornea is shaped more oval like a football than round like a baseball, or the lens has mismatched curves. As a result, light is focused on more than one place in your eye, causing blurred vision.

If you have astigmatism, you have probably found yourself squinting to try to see distant objects, read menus or use your smartphone. What’s more, you may experience headaches or eye strain when concentrating for longer periods, such as when driving or working with computer screens.

Astigmatism can also affect depth perception, making it difficult to judge how far objects are. And you may also see halos or glare when looking at lights, particularly at night. This could make driving in the dark problematic, especially when trying to deal with the glare from oncoming headlights.

If you are experiencing any of these situations, you should discuss this with your doctor during your eye exam.

Can ZEISS SMILE correct astigmatism?

Laser eye surgery can be used to correct myopia with or without astigmatism. During ZEISS SMILE, a thin layer of the cornea is removed. This reshapes the cornea, thereby correcting the astigmatism and the refractive error.

Many people have already been treated successfully with ZEISS SMILE. Learn more about how patients experienced the procedure and the recovery.