LESSON 3

EYE DEFECTS

An eye defect is a condition where the eye fails to focus an object well unless aided by external lenses.  The common eye defects include:

1. Short sightedness (myopia):

This is usually caused by a large eyeball or a very strong lens. Light from a distant object is focused in front of the retina. The individual can only see nearby object but not distant ones.

Illustration

This can be corrected by putting on diverging (concave) lenses.

2. Long sightedness (hypermetropia):

This is caused by a small or short eyeball or a very weak lens such that a close object is focused far behind the retina. The individual can see distant objects but cannot see nearby objects.

 Illustration

Long sightedness can be corrected by wearing converging (convex) lenses.

3. Astigmatism

This is caused by unequal refraction of the cornea and lens due to uneven curving in them. It results into some parts of the object being well focused on the retina and some not to be focused. It is normally due to old age. This can be solved by wearing cylindrical lenses.

4. Presbyopia

This condition occurs when the lens hardens due to old age and does not focus. It can be corrected by wearing spectacles with convex lenses or often 2 pairs of spots may be necessary i.e. a pair with convex lenses for close vision and a pair of concave lenses for distant vision or the 2 types of lenses can be combined into one pair known as bi-focal spectacles.

5. Cataract

It is a condition which occurs when an individual is aging. It is caused by the eye lens becoming opaque due to a thin covering formed on it. It is corrected by surgical removal of the thin opaque layer of the lens.

Other eye defects include trachoma, conjunctivitis, colour blindness and glaucoma.

6. Colour vision

The cones are photoreceptor cells on the retina, which are concerned with colour vision. There are three types of cones, which are sensitive to three primary colours i.e. the blue sensitive cone, green sensitive cone and red sensitive cone. When blue sensitive cones alone are stimulated, blue colour is perceived. Stimulation of green alone gives green colour. Stimulation of red cones produces red colour. Equal stimulation of both green and red gives yellow colour. Equal stimulation of the entire three gives white colour and when no cone is stimulated, no colour (black) is perceived. This is known as the trichromatic theory.