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Q&A with Australian Health Practitioners
What is astigmatism?
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Can it lead to glaucoma and will cataract surgery help? -
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Glaucoma Australia is the peak glaucoma awareness/education/support association in Australia.It is a national, not-for-profit registered charity dedicated to providing educational services to raise awareness about … View Profile
Most people have some amount of astigmatism. Astigmatism is an irregularity of the curvature of the cornea which is the clear front part of the eye we see through. Think of an ideal cornea as a perfect dome at the front of the eye. Astigmatism is created when some parts of the dome are steeper than other parts. Most of the time this is just the way people are built but surgery, injuries or a fleshy growth over the cornea called a pterygium can cause astigmatism.
Whilst glaucoma and astigmatism can occur at the same time one doesn’t cause the other.
Some surgical procedures, including for glaucoma, can increase astigmatism due to the incision altering the curvature of the cornea.
Astigmatism is usually corrected by glasses or contact lenses. It can also be corrected by laser refractive surgery and cataract surgery. People with glaucoma are not normally suitable for refractive surgery but this is best discussed with an ophthalmologist.
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