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• Question
• Posted: 2008-10-29 23:51:58 By Stephanie R
• I am 46 and female. I am a manifesting carrier of X-linked Cone-Rod dystrophy. My Dad and Uncle were both blind. My 19 year old daughter has no symptoms.
  
  My question is as follows. We were recently in the car with my son who is 14.5 years old. It was 10pm and dark and we were driving on the highway. Out of the blue (we weren't talking about vision at all) he happened to mention that he sees better in the dark. He is nearsighted and wears glasses but his eyes have always corrected to 20/20 or 20/25. He also mentioned while we were driving in the dark that it is easier to read with his glasses off "because the print is bolder without the glasses." I thought these were odd comments from a teenager, especially since the CRD is not a topic of discussion in our family.
  
  My question is two fold. A) Should I be concerned and take him to my doctor in Iowa and B) Do any of you see text "bolder" without correction for nearsightedness (or at least when the sight was correctable?) I have heard that sometimes nearsighted people don't need glasses to read but not that the text was bolder.
  
  I don't want to scare him unnecessarily so even though I realize I could always have him evaluated I would rather wait until there is a reason or need to do so. Since he sees ok now with the exception of being more comfortable in the dark and the comment about reading without his glasses I am not sure the time is now.
  
  Thanks!
  Steph

• Posted: 2008-10-31 12:41:47 By Francine M
• Hi Steph.
  I have RP and was extremely nearsighted before I had cataract suregery. It was easier for me to read without the glasses growing up because like your son said, the text was bolder for some reason. But as far as seeing at night, I lost all night vision between the ages of 11 and 14.
  I think it is a personal choice as to whether or not you feel the need to have him checked. I think that the closer he comes to the legal age to drive it probably wouldn't be a bad idea. I was diagnosed at age 15 and never thought that I saw differently than anyone else. I was already legally blind with only 5 degrees of peripheral field. Driving would have surely been a mistake, but like I said, I didn't know anything was wrong. I had compensated my whole life for the vision loss.
  I would ask your son some questions. Teenagers are very honest. Mine was. If the answers feel out of place, then I would definately have him checked for his own safety before driving age.
  Good luck
  Beth

• Posted: 2008-10-31 20:21:17 By Maria P
• Stephanie,
  
  I would have him checked. If he does have it, it will help him make some decisions about his future and if he doesn't, you know that you are just dealing with "normal" visual problems. Like Beth says, even those of us with retinal degeneration didn't think we swa any different so your best bet is to have him checked.
  Marisa