Which condition causes a gradual loss of accommodation leading to difficulties with near vision?

Presbyopia is the condition characterized by a gradual loss of accommodation, resulting in difficulties with near vision. This condition typically begins in early to mid-forties as the eye's lens becomes less flexible, making it harder to focus on close objects. With age, the ciliary muscles that control the shape of the lens also become less effective, further impairing the ability to accommodate.

Understanding presbyopia is critical because it affects most individuals as they age, leading to the common necessity for reading glasses or multifocal lenses. Unlike other refractive errors, presbyopia is not due to a shape discrepancy in the eyeball or the cornea, but rather a natural aging process related to the lens's capability to change shape dynamically.

Astigmatism, myopia, and hyperopia relate to how light is focused on the retina and typically involve distortions in vision that can affect distance or clarity, but they do not specifically involve the loss of accommodation related to age. Presbyopia distinctly highlights the loss of the eye's ability to adjust focus on nearby objects as a direct consequence of aging, making it the most appropriate answer in this context.