What Is Nearsightedness or Myopia

More than 70 million people in North America are nearsighted. Myopia is the medical term for nearsightedness. Patients with myopia can see things clearer up close than in the distance without glasses or contact lenses. Myopia occurs when an eye is too long for the cornea's curvature. Light rays entering the eye do not come to a sharp focus on the retina at the back of the eye. Instead, they focus further forward, producing a blurred image.

Laser technology such as photorefractive keratectomy or LASIK may correct this condition, when glasses or contact lenses are not tolerated.