Asthenopia -

It is a convenient term that encompasses the group of symptoms that depend on fatigue of the ciliary muscle or the extraocular muscles . The degree of asthenopia depends not only on the nature and intensity of the defect, but also on the general condition of the patient, being worse in delicate individuals, with anemia , and neurasthenics.

Symptoms

This state occurs very frequently and causes a wide variety of symptoms. The most common manifestations of asthenopia are:

Pain in or around the eyes , or headache, generally aggravated by the use of the eyes in close-up work; in some cases, only after these jobs.
Tiredness and discomfort when using the eyes for close-up work, manifested by inability to use the eyes in work of this nature after a short time, without causing clouding of vision , confusion of the printed lines, pain in the eyes around it, headache, drowsiness, tearing, photophobia and cogestion, and a state of irritability of the eyelids with itching and burning sensations. These symptoms can be much more pronounced at night, when the patient is tired or when using artificial lighting.
Vertigo and tendency to diplopia.
Reflex symptoms, such as nausea, contraction of the facial muscles, exceptionally hemicrania, chorea and some other neuroses.

The term asthenopia refers to the aforementioned symptoms, when they are produced by fatigue of the ciliary muscle or by muscle imbalance. However, some of these symptoms may exist in chronic catarrhal conjunctivitis , in which the conjunctiva is hypertrophied and rough, without any refractive void or heterophoria, or after successful correction of these vices.

Varieties

Accommodative, muscular and neurasthenic. Two of these varieties can be associated.

Accommodative asthenopia

The most common. It is due to the effort and fatigue of the ciliary muscle in ametropia, when the eyes are used too frequently or excessively in ametropia. It is especially common in astigmatism and hyperopia, but it is also common in myopia and presbyopia.

Treatment

It consists of the use of crystals that correct the refractive vice, as previously advised. In delicate and neurasthenic individuals, it is very important to attend to the general condition.

Muscular asthenopia

It is due to the fact that there is a lack of balance in the motor apparatus of the eye (heterophoria), which makes an abnormal effort necessary to maintain simple binocular vision. Its existence can be found with ametropia, and at the same time, depends on it, being also possible in emmetropia.

Neurasthenic asthenopia

It is the variety that suffer ametropes or ametropes in whom the correction of their refractive vice and the treatment and any heterophoria exist have not produced relief. This state is a neurosis and depends on a general asthenia of the nervous system; therefore it is more frequent in neurasthenic individuals, and convalescent of debilitating diseases; It can be a manifestation of reflex irritation from a nearby infective or inflammatory focus, a tooth for example. It is often very annoying or rebellious. The more carefully the refractive state and the muscular balance of the eye are investigated, the fewer cases are found that can be classified as neurasthenic.