Trying to navigate in the dark isn’t easy for most people, but some people have considerable difficulty seeing in low-light conditions. Having trouble seeing in poor light can make things like walking through your home or driving at night difficult or even dangerous.

What Is Night Blindness?

Night blindness (also known as nyctalopia) is a condition in which someone has trouble seeing in dim light or darkness. In dark conditions, the iris opens wider, making the pupil larger. This dilation lets more light into the eye so more light can reach the retina.

Problems seeing at night can be traced back to your retina’s rod cells. These cells function as photoreceptors that convert light rays into electrical signals, creating what your brain interprets as images. You have two kinds of photoreceptors in your eyes: rod cells and cone cells. Rod cells specialize in movement and adaptation to darkness/light while cone cells specialize in distinguishing colors. When your rod cells suffer damage, that’s when night blindness can set in.

Symptoms of Night Blindness

Damage to the rod cells can come in many forms. Night blindness is not a disease in itself but, is actually a symptom of some other common vision problems. Some of those conditions are:

• Cataracts—A condition in which the lens of the eye becomes cloudy, resulting in blurry or distorted vision.
• Myopia—Also called nearsightedness, myopia refers to when close-up objects are clear but far-away objects are blurry.
• Glaucoma—Medications used to treat glaucoma can cause night blindness.
• Vitamin A deficiency—A lack of pigments needed for your eyes’ photoreceptors to work correctly.
• Retinitis pigmentosa—A disease in which there is damage in the retina caused by genetic defects.

Treatments for night blindness vary depending on the cause. If it is cataracts, for example, surgery might be the best solution. If it’s myopia, maybe you need a new prescription. If it’s medications or a vitamin A deficiency, a new medication or supplement may be in order. If it’s retinitis pigmentosa your doctor can suggest treatment options for your particular symptoms.

Driving with Night Blindness

One of the biggest challenges to those with night blindness is driving at night. Because of this, a common question people ask is, “Is night blindness the same as astigmatism?” While astigmatism can make it difficult to see at night, it isn’t the same as night blindness.

Astigmatism is caused by the cornea or lens being a different shape than normal. This causes light rays that enter the eye to not refract properly, making vision blurry. Night blindness, as we previously learned, is caused by damage to your eyes’ rods.

If you have worked with your VSP^® network doctor to arrive at an effective solution to your night blindness and have been cleared by your primary physician to drive at night, here are a few ways you can make that activity easier:

• Keep your headlights and windshield clean to emit as much light as possible from your headlights and decrease the amount of glare on your windshield caused by light reflecting off of dirt or debris. 
• Get your headlights aligned so they illuminate as much of the road as possible (as opposed to shining straight at cars in front of you). 
• Adjust your rearview mirror. Some rearview mirrors have a setting made for driving at night to reduce the brightness of lights behind you. Check to see if your mirror allows for this adjustment. If it doesn’t, consider investing in one that does. 
• Focus on the lines in the middle of the road and other road markers. The key here is not looking directly at the lights on the roads but focusing on the areas onto which they are shining, such as the lines on the road. 

Having Trouble Seeing at Night?

If you’re having trouble seeing at night then make an appointment with your VSP^® network doctor. Your eye doctor will be able to diagnose what the problem is and put together a plan of next steps to take.

Article provided by VSP. Information received through VSP Vision Care channels is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice, medical recommendations, diagnosis or treatment. Always seek the advice of your eye doctor, physician, or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.