Good Vision Is Especially Essential For Elderly Drivers
Posted on: 29 December 2014
According to All About Vision, car accidents are the leading cause of death for people between the ages of 65 to 75. While it's hard to determine exactly how these car accidents happen, experts believe that a lot of the accidents are caused by poor vision problems. If you want to avoid becoming a statistic, you may want to get your eyes checked by an eye doctor.
What Happens To Eyes As They Age?
As you age, your body parts tend to wear out, and this includes your eyes. You can begin experiencing various types of issues, including:
- Vision loss
- Nighttime vision loss
- Cataracts on the eyes
- Blurriness
- Peripheral vision loss
Most people have trouble with their vision as they age, but there are a lot of ways to fix or correct common eye problems.
What Treatment Options Are There?
You should schedule annual visits to an eye doctor as soon as you begin noticing trouble with your vision. Your doctor might begin treating your problems with eyeglasses, which tend to help for many years.
Over time, though, you may need some type of eye surgery to help you see better, and cataract surgery is a common one. In fact, half of the people in the U.S. that are over the age of 80 may already have cataracts, or may have gone through cataract surgery with the help of a center like Tri State Ophthalmology.
Cataract surgery is used to remove the lens from the eye. As you age, the lens gets foggy and thick, and this can prevent you from seeing well. Cataract surgery is fast and routine, and you will notice a difference with your vision after just a few days.
Are There Other Steps To Take?
If you have trouble seeing while you drive, you may want to stop driving for a while. You can visit an eye doctor in the meantime and get the necessary treatment for your eyes, and after your eyesight improves you could begin driving again.
Many states require vision tests before they will issue driver's licenses to people, and you may not be able to pass this vision test with the current condition of your eyes.
Remember, roads are public areas. If you are going to drive, make sure that you do everything you can to be a safe driver. One of the most important things you can do is to get an annual eye exam from your local eye doctor.
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