If a patient is accommodating during a refraction, it may result in a prescription with too much _________ power.

When a patient is accommodating during a refraction, they are actively using their eye's ability to focus on near objects. This can cause misinterpretation of the amount of lens power needed for clear vision at distance. Specifically, when the patient's accommodation is engaged, they may inadvertently focus more on the near point, which can lead to the prescription being overly negative or resulting in too much minus power.

In a typical refraction scenario, the goal is to determine the ideal lens power that provides clear vision without over-contributing to the power needed for distance vision. However, if a patient accommodates, they may lead the examiner to use a stronger minus lens than required, thinking they need more correction for distance. This dynamic can lead to the issuance of a prescription that is overly minus, causing potential distance vision issues when the patient is not actively accommodating.

This phenomenon underscores the importance of ensuring that patients are relaxed and not overly focused during refraction to avoid unnecessary errors in lens power prescription.