Q: My 14 years old sister is having myopia and has a power of -2.25. Last week she got her eyesight checked and the reports stated the following - right eye’s spherical power is -3.25, cylindrical power is 0.5, axis is 40 degree; left eye’s spherical power is -2.75, cylindrical power and axis are nil, and vision is 6/6 in both the eyes. Is it necessary to put on the cylindrical glass or can we make new glasses without the cylindrical effect? Will the cylindrical power increase if glasses are not used? How has her power increased to such a high extent?

A:When you are having test at optometrist or eye specialist, patient should try to appreciate the improvement with cylindrical lenses without which patient may get headaches after some time or may not see as clearly. With small myopic correction like this, it is not essential to have cylindrical lenses. More over wearing or not wearing it will not make eyes any better or worse. Her vision is good with this correction but with age the power will get slightly worse till about 20 yrs of age. It's nothing to worry about.