Accommodation problems affect the eye’s ability to change focus between distances. They are more common in children, young adults, and people with neurological or systemic conditions.
Types and Causes
Accommodative insufficiency, infacility, and spasm can result from uncorrected hyperopia, fatigue, excessive near work, head injury, or certain medications. Presbyopia in middle age reflects structural loss of accommodative ability.
- Symptoms include near blur, headaches, and difficulty switching between near and far
- Systemic diseases such as diabetes or Parkinson’s may influence accommodation
- Drugs with anticholinergic effects reduce focusing ability
- Trauma and neurological disorders can disrupt accommodative pathways
Management
Treatment depends on the underlying type, ranging from appropriate lenses and vision therapy to addressing systemic or drug‑related causes. Regular review tracks improvement.
- Children may benefit from targeted exercises and reading strategies
- Occupational demands should be discussed to tailor solutions
- Presbyopic changes are managed with near or multifocal corrections
- Any sudden or asymmetric focusing loss requires further investigation
