Myopia progression at 31/32 years/pathological myopia, secondary diseases to be feared?
Hello,
First of all, I'd like to say that I'm writing in this forum because I've seen that there are truly luminaries on every topic who contribute here, completely without payment—which is remarkable. Secondly, I'd like to point out that I'm a hypochondriac, which means I know I can be overly anxious about many things when it comes to health. However, I also feel a sense of shame, which means I don't want to go to the eye doctor again and waste resources. That's why I wanted to ask here first.
About me: I was prescribed my first pair of glasses at 12. At around 16 or 17 (2007), I had my left prescription -2.25, my right prescription -2.75, and my astigmatism 0.5 on both sides. About two years later, I had another test because I'd lost my glasses; the results were the same. Then I went to the optician in 2013 (age 22): left prescription -2.75, right prescription -3.75. In between, I got another pair of glasses in January 2018: left prescription -3.75, right prescription -4.75 (astigmatism: 1.00).
Now in June 2023 new glasses: left -4.75, right -5.00, astigmatism 1.25 each.
Although I know that a -0.25 deterioration in 5 years isn't much, 1 diopter in the left eye is. What worries me most is that all over the internet, you can find the classification of school myopia as beginning in adolescence (which is correct), but that myopia usually ends at age 25, and "in rare cases" at age 30. Now, medically, "rare" is already something extremely rare, but now, given that my left eye has gotten so much worse, especially this year and last year, at age 31 and 32, I'm naturally wondering how that can be. —> Do I necessarily know, based on the timing of myopia progression (i.e., that it progresses after age 26/30), that I suffer from pathological/malignant myopia?
Or can someone tell me that values of -5 D at age 32 are highly atypical for myopia magna/progressiva? So, should the values be higher?
5-10% of pathologically myopic patients are said to suffer from CNV, now it says here, on the page number printed ( https://opus-htw-aalen.bsz-bw.de/frontdoor/deliver/index/docId/996/file/Behrens_Robert_BA.pdf ), that my risk of -5 dpt has now increased dramatically for AMD: ,,
[…] the incidence of dry macular degeneration in myopia of less than -5 dpt is 0.42 percent. For myopia of more than -5 dpt, the prevalence of dry macular degeneration is 60 times higher at 25.3 percent […]"
If you think about the shocking images on cigarette packets (double the risk), and then I have a 60-fold risk at 25.3%—that sounds to me like I have a 25% chance of getting cancer. It's demotivating me for life. This isn't about vitiligo or anything like that, but about the most important sensory organ. These are serious diseases that massively limit one's quality of life.
Pages 7 to 13 (page numbers on the pages themselves) are also worth reading: https://refubium.fu-berlin.de/bitstream/handle/fub188/11415/01_Einleitung.pdf?sequence=2&isAllowed=y
It bothers me so much that I printed out a spot test, check it weekly, or test it daily while driving or walking to see how much worse my vision is with my glasses on my right than on my left. My current reading is -5.00, but I think that's no longer relevant; I definitely see a bit more clearly on my left. When it's very cloudy/dark, I also don't see people from a distance as clearly.
Since I also have to read a lot (I could read books without prescription up to -3.75 dpt on my left eye), I naturally also constantly worry and blame myself): Should I always go outside immediately when the sun is shining, constantly looking into the distance… or does my behavior no longer influence the progression (which would of course be reassuring, since I am obsessive-compulsive…)
Thank you very much for your help!
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Your concern is totally unfounded than with your values you have nothing to do with what you fear. Patological myopia has quite different features.
No, 1.00 dpt. in 5 years is not much. Also note that this happened between mid 20 and 30. As short-sightedness stabilizes only gradually.
This is the only real problem of everything that is in your question.
Again: Pathological myopia is something quite different. You have moderate strengths and are far from a myopia to be assessed as ill.
Take care of your problem with the hypochondria, then you’ll be much better overall. Good luck!
Thank you, LenaLiebtEis! If it is “totally unfounded”, I am delighted. As already indicated, how the truistic articles often indicate (“Myopia became a big folk disease, thus indirectly quite often responsible for severe consequences/blindness”), I am thinking. And these -5 dpt have given me the concern that this is the threshold for dramatically increased risk of AMD/CNV/network skin detachment. And you know that in myopia, besides the predisposition and the exposition of sunlight, the time of close work is crucial. If I knew I had no influence with my age of 32 now, it would probably calm me down. But so I have a bad conscience every time working longer on the PC when the eyes are exhausted.
I’m doing strength training for compensation, that’s very good to me, but there was also the worry that I can’t do it at some point because of too high values (too thin, danger of tearing).
Perhaps the crisp point: I have now got a new glasses with 32 years, because I must think of this everywhere-finding rule that the eye growth in the school myopie is completed with the middle/end 20 (for example, by other very experienced users here how to read euphonium only today: ). And so now the tension that I hope I am not in the unstopping myopia. So just from the thought: I am 32 now, was with the ophthalmologist – so if it deteriorates again.
I used to be more often in psychotherapeutic treatment (ADHS & anxiety disorders), but well – some things are not so easy, and because I unfortunately do not have an indefinite place, I am very careful with psychotherapy. Unfortunately, it’s very difficult, but give my best..
I try to say your sentence “You have moderate strengths and are far away from a myopia that is to be assessed as ill.” From the strengths I can live with it.
A user who regularly writes about shortsightedness what is very, very strongly shortsighted and makes lt. his answers all kinds of sports, including power sports or bodybuilding. The retina is also not torn, although its short-sightedness is extreme. Don’t worry so much.
Thanks for the star 🙂
Thank you.
-5 Dioptriene is already a lot and annoys as such, but strong shortsightedness begins medically only from -6 dioptriene. And some people have double-digit values.
Then, in fact, the risk for later eye diseases is significantly increased and one should have the eyes regularly examined immediately. Best half a year.
But that’s all you can do. The risk for certain diseases then also depends on the predisposition. This is all too non-specific, and only one ophthalmologist will be able to examine and advise.
In the event of risks, it is always the case that the possible case can occur or not, but then the likelihood for it ultimately does not matter. It doesn’t help to get crazy. Some rather rare diseases can lead to blindness as untreated. If you are normal or minimally short-sighted, you will never go to the ophthalmologist.
Thank you – so the message helps me with something about the question: risk/thanking for subsequent diseases. Hypochonder..
Then there is the question of how the chances are, whether the progression can soon stop. Of course, I know that you can’t calculate this, it’s just that you find everywhere that you have to stop in early adulthood when it’s a non-pathological school myopie. I am so concerned because this 1 diopter deterioration has probably also developed with me at 31 and 32 years. And if I don’t have school myopie, then…
First, do something against your hyperchondria and stop Googlen on medical sites. I have a very strong visual weakness since the first year of life, currently approx. -24 D. Regularly I let my eye background examine and so far the fundus findings were still o.B..The intervals between the visual strength changes are becoming shorter and I think that it will stabilize soon.Don’t worry about it, it will only bring you annoying grunt. Try it with contact lenses.
Dear, I answered LenaLiebtEis, you gave both answers in the same direction. Thank you. Yes, maybe I should really regain myself to start psychotherapy again.
simple laser op; then rest…
Honestly, I don’t think that this is the answer to my question: what does a laser-OP have to do with my fear of myopia progression and the question of classification, whether it is progressive, because I have a deterioration in the fourth decade of my life?
What does a laser surgery have to do with my fear of consequent diseases such as AMD and CNV?
On the contrary, should one not consider a laser surgery only when the progress of myopia has been stopped for a few years, which was never the case with me?
the myopia seems to be more adapting to the visual habits than a mysterious disease – so to balance more often look into the distance …
Lasers do not help against the longer-term risk of vision in short-sightedness, because this results mainly from the too long eye and the correspondingly stretched and thinner retina.
Anyway, it helped me…