Short sightedness, medical term myopia, means that you can't focus on distant objects, which makes them look blurred. Myopia is very common and tends to run in families. The condition is caused when your cornea is too curved, or your eyeball too long, light rays from distant objects focus in front of your retina. This makes objects seem fuzzy or blurred. Around five million people in Britain are short-sighted. The condition usually develops in childhood or adolescence and is often first noticed at school.

Hyperopia is a sight problem that affects your ability to see close-up objects. Commonly known as long-sightedness, the condition is a type of focusing error, and tends to get worse as you get older. Hyperopia occurs when the eyeball is too short in relation to the focusing power of the cornea and lens. This means that light rays travel to the back of the retina before they have been bent by the cornea and lens. Close-up objects therefore appear blurry because the light rays have not been focused properly.

Both myopia and hyperopia can be treated with laser eye surgery, provided you are over the age of 21, are healthy and not noticed any decline in your vision over the past year. In most cases vision can be restored back to near 20/20 vision.

It seems evident that a lot of people are aware of laser eye surgery but little is actually known about what actually happens. Well firstly and most importantly local anaesthetic is applied to the eye which is going to be treated. Next a computer controlled laser is used to cut a flap in the cornea, a laser is favoured in this case since there is less chance of infection than a scalpel.

A hinge is skilfully and carefully left allowing the cornea flap to be folded back, revealing the inner portion of the middle of the cornea, this part is promptly vaporised by the laser. The flap is then replaced and the eye quickly recovers. Despite it sounding like a very complex and procedure, it only takes approximately an hour. Patients usually wear an eye patch for around 24 hours after the op, when eye sight should be restored to its former glory, sometimes it can take a short while to allow the eyes to fully adjust.

Now you know everything about laser eye surgery, what it can do and who it can help, what is stopping you fixing your eyesight once and for all. No longer do you have to accept uncomfortable contacts or expensive glasses. Thankfully modern medicine and technology means people do not have to struggle on with myopia or Hyperopia. Give someone the most amazing, unique gift they will always thank you for, give them the gift of sight.