Astigmatism is a common vision problem, but most people aren't really sure what it actually does to their vision. Often accompanying nearsightedness or farsightedness, astigmatism is usually caused by an irregularly shaped cornea.

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In a normal eye with a round corneal curve, light rays passing through the cornea bend toward the center and focus at one exact spot on the retina. With corneal astigmatism, the surface of the eye has an uneven curvature. As a result, light rays are not focused at one spot on the retina, and your vision becomes distorted.

If you have only a small amount of astigmatism, you may not notice it, or have just slightly blurred vision. But sometimes, uncorrected astigmatism can give you headaches or eyestrain, and distort or blur your vision at all distances.

Unfortunately, cataract surgery alone cannot correct astigmatism. However, the AcrySof® IQ Toric IOL now makes it possible to treat cataracts and correct corneal astigmatism at the same time.

Find out how the AcrySof® IQ Toric IOL can help you regain your quality of life.

[Page updated August 2009]