The medicine is called Vuity and it works by constricting the pupil. It can be applied once a day and its effect lasts for six hours.
With advancing age, it is normal for the quality of our near vision to begin to decline. After all, it is not for nothing that mobile phones created specifically for the elderly tend to have such large numbers.
This condition is called presbyopia — also known as presbyopia. eyestrain — and affects more than a billion people worldwide. More specifically, presbyopia is the eyes’ inability to focus on nearby eyes, which results in blurred images. It starts to get worse around age 40 and gets worse until it stabilizes at age 60.
Researchers know that age is the main aggravating factor of presbyopia, but there is currently a debate about the mechanical causes at its root.
One theory suggests that with the aging of our lenses, they become heavier and cannot change shape easily. Another theory suggests that the muscle that pulls on the lens becomes weaker with age.
Regardless of the cause, there is now a promise for a solution. In 2021, the Food and Drug Administration approved a new medication in drops that treats presbyopia.
Before the release of these drops — called vuity — people wore glasses, contact lenses or resorted to surgery to alleviate presbyopia. But these drops can be an easier and less risky alternative.
The drops make up for the lens’ lack of ability to change shape when making the pupil get smaller. Contracting the pupil reduces the amount of scattered light and this causes the light entering the eye to be more concentrated on the retina, which extends the range of distances at which objects are focused.
When we put the drops in our eyes, it takes 15 minutes for the active ingredient, the pilocarpine, start working. Pilocarpine is a medication that was first developed in the late 17th century and can treat conditions such as glaucoma and ocular hypertension. The effect on the pupils can last for about six hours.
Having smaller pupils also means that less light enters the eye. While this is not a problem during the day when there is a lot of sunlight, it can cause difficulties in low light conditions. In addition, headaches and red eyes are the most common side effects of lights.
Currently, Vuity is approved for a daily use in each eye and is subject to a medical prescription. The future of presbyopia treatment thus looks promising.