What causes presbyopia?
The lens inside the eye becomes less able to change shape, so it cannot increase its focusing power for near objects. The muscle that changes it still works; the lens itself becomes thicker and stiffer with age.
- Subject
- Vision problems
- Topic
- Presbyopia & reading vision
- Kind of question
- What causes…
- Last reviewed
- 22 September 2026
In more detail
That distinction explains the treatment options. Because the problem is in the lens rather than in the cornea, laser surgery on the cornea cannot restore the lens’s flexibility: the available approaches work by giving you a compromise instead, such as focusing one eye for distance and the other for near.
What this answer depends on
- Age
- Whether the lens has also started to cloud
- Whether you have another refractive error alongside it
Related guides
People also ask
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Where this answer sits
It is one of 483 answers in the vision and eye health knowledge base, filed under Vision problems & prescriptions in Presbyopia & reading vision . The subject page carries the answers either side of it, and the hub is searchable.
Subjects this question touches
The pages that answer the subject behind the question, rather than the question itself.
- Condition Presbyopia
This information is for educational purposes and does not replace an examination by a qualified eye-care professional.
General answers cannot tell you what is happening in your own eyes. Only an examination by a qualified ophthalmologist can do that.
Sources & further reading
We prefer primary sources. Where a claim comes from a manufacturer, a single study or a regulator, it is labelled as such below.
- EyeSmart: eye health information for the public
Patient-facing material from the largest ophthalmology professional body, covering conditions, tests and treatments outside refractive surgery.
Used for Cross-checking patient-facing explanations of non-refractive eye conditions; Describing what tests such as dilation and OCT involve.
Link checked 23 September 2026