Presbyopia is a virtually inevitable part of aging, causing near vision to begin to decline as people reach their late 30s and 40s and continuing to do so throughout their lives. Today, new presbyopes — people aged 35 to 49 — make up about one-third of the population in the United States.¹ They fall into the group known as Generation X, born between 1965 and 1985. They join their famous older siblings, the Baby Boomers (born between 1946 and 1964), who continue to make up a large portion of patients with presbyopia. To better understand these patients, it helps to know how they view aging — of which presbyopia is a rather early sign — and how vision problems affect their lives.

Near Vision for Active Lives

Many new presbyopes in your practice lead very active lives, with busy careers, children, travel, and hobbies. Frustrating near vision problems rear their heads as these patients read books and restaurant menus, look at their smartphones, and use computers.

For people who have worn glasses or contact lenses, a new prescription is a simple solution. But for the many new presbyopes who have never worn vision correction before, near vision problems can be frustrating. Without regular exams, it may take a while to identify the problem. And when they do recognize the problem, they often test the waters with off-the-rack reading glasses. Although readers make near tasks easier, they’re also very inconvenient — often the only alternative to losing them daily is to wear them on a chain around the neck. The fashion transition can feel like a very short trip from youth to old age.

Approaching New Presbyopes

All age groups are under the care of ophthalmologists, but for practices focused on surgery, the population can be dominated by narrower age groups. Cataract practices primarily see seniors; retina specialists see a range of patients, including seniors with age-related macular degeneration; and glaucoma practices see mostly older patients as well. LASIK practices have a broader patient population of Millennials, Gen Xers, and Baby Boomers in their fifties.

Because most presbyopia procedures are performed by LASIK or cataract/LASIK practices, physicians and staff are comfortable talking to a variety of age groups. However, a bit more information about Generation X — the key demographic for new presbyopes — could help practices be more successful in reaching and converting these patients.

Gen Xers are known for being information-intensive, including when it comes to health care, and they appreciate facts and scientific evidence.² Practices should consider these desires as they design in-office literature and social media marketing, which can link out to more in-depth reading. Gen Xers also appreciate positive in-person experiences.² Friendly, efficient staff can make a big difference between dissatisfied patients and happy ones.

Generation X also seems well prepared to consider surgery for presbyopia. About 40% of them say they’re worried about age-related changes in their appearance, and 24% would consider medical steps to diminish those signs.² In a survey of 1,067 American Gen Xers, 68% liked looking younger.³ And, when it comes to improving near vision, they want correction that doesn’t diminish their appearance. In fact, 49% of Gen Xers said that if reading glasses made them look older, they would stop wearing them.³

All of these survey results point to a population of new presbyopes that is more than willing to take advantage of the treatment options available for presbyopia, particularly if those options allow them to look and feel younger. •

REFERENCES

1. U.S. Census Bureau. Age and Sex Composition: 2010. Available online: https://www.census.gov/prod/cen2010/briefs/c2010br-03.pdf . Last accessed Dec. 6, 2017.
2. Kantar Health. The global health and wellness report. Available online: http://www.kantarhealth.com/docs/ebooks/2016-global-health-and-wellness-report.pdf . Last accessed Dec. 6, 2017.
3. Alcon. Alcon Study Reveals Nearly Half of Americans Would Avoid Reading Glasses If They Knew it Made Them Look Older. May 19, 2015. Available online: https://www.alcon.com/news/media-releases/alcon-study-reveals-nearly-half-americans-would-avoid-reading-glasses-if-they . Last accessed Dec. 6, 2017.