A 21-year-old member asked:
What causes astigmatism?
4 doctor answers • 8 doctors weighed in

Dr. Vasu Brownanswered
Integrative Medicine 35 years experience
Irregular Cornea: Astigmatism usually is caused by an irregularly shaped cornea. Instead of the cornea having a symmetrically round shape (like a baseball), it is shaped more like a football, with one meridian being significantly more curved than the meridian perpendicular to it. Astigmatism usually causes vision to be blurred or distorted to some degree at all distances.
6.3k viewsAnswered >2 years ago

Dr. Richard Bensingeranswered
Ophthalmology 53 years experience
Eye growth: Mosty astigmatism is due to the way the eye develops as it grows and is due to differential growth in one axis causing an ovalness of the need for glasses. Some astigmatism can also be from eye trauma.
5.5k viewsReviewed >2 years ago

Dr. Heidi Fowleranswered
Psychiatry 26 years experience
Refractive Error: Here is a great article by mayo clinic: http://www.Mayoclinic.Com/health/astigmatism/ds00230/dsection=causes. Astigmatism has to do with distortions of the curves in the cornea or the lens of the eye.
4.9k viewsReviewed >2 years agoMerged

Dr. Harold Peltananswered
Ophthalmology 29 years experience
Cornea, lens: In astigmatism, light that enters the eye is refracted more in one direction than the other, allowing only part of the object to be in focus at one time. 95% of the time, this is caused by differences in curvature in different axes of the cornea on the front of the eye. The cornea does 2/3 of the focusing of light in the eye. The other 1/3 is done by the lens, which causes 5% of astigmatism.
4.9k viewsReviewed >2 years agoMerged
Similar questions
Philippines
A 19-year-old female asked about a 22-year-old male:
What is astigmatism? And what causes it?
1 doctor answer • 1 doctor weighed in

Dr. Martin Perlmutteranswered
Ophthalmology 60 years experience
Eye mishapend: astigmatism is when the eye or its structures are not round (spherical). It commonly is on the cornes but may be in the lens or the shape of the eye itself.
1.4k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 43-year-old member asked:
What is astigmatism?
4 doctor answers • 6 doctors weighed in

Dr. Richard Bensingeranswered
Ophthalmology 53 years experience
Oval eye shape: Refractive errors require either plus (farsighted) or minus (nearsighted) glasses + an extra amount if the eye is oval in shape (astigmatism). These are called refractive errors and can be corrected with glasses or contacts. The list of other eye problems is long and these are usually unrelated to astigmatism.
5.8k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
Last updated Mar 21, 2017
People also asked
Connect with a U.S. board-certified doctor by text or video anytime, anywhere.
24/7 visits - just $39!
50% off with $15/month membership
Disclaimer:
Content on HealthTap (including answers) should not be used for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment, and interactions on HealthTap do not create a doctor-patient relationship. Never disregard or delay professional medical advice in person because of anything on HealthTap. Call your doctor or 911 if you think you may have a medical emergency.