Category Health Info

October 6, 2013 Posted in  Health Info

During pregnancy, the blood vessels in a baby’s eyes begin to develop around 16 weeks gestation. By about the 34th week of pregnancy, the blood vessels in the eye are well developed enough that the retina has a good blood supply.

When babies are born early, the blood vessels on the retina are not fully developed. After birth, the vessels may begin to grow so quickly that their growth damages the retina. Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) is the name for the improper growth of the blood vessels on the retina and the damage caused by that growth.

In most preemies who develop ROP, the growth of the retinal blood vessels will slow down on its own, and vision will develop normally. Some premature babies, though, develop severe ROP.
Stages of ROP

Retinopathy of prematurity is classified according ...

October 6, 2013 Posted in  Health Info

What causes retinal detachment?

Retinal detachment is caused by a combination of factors including retinal holes, retinal breaks or retinal tears, liquefaction of the vitreous humor, and mechanical forces on the retina, often referred to as “traction”

What caused retinal holes, retinal breaks or retinal tears?

A variety of factors including:

1. Hereditary abnormalities of the peripheral retina often associated with myopia (near-sightedness)
2. Eye trauma
3. Complications of eye surgery for cataract
4. Glaucoma
5. Various retinal and macular diseases
6. Vision correction

What is the relationship between near sightedness and retinal detachment?

Simply having a longer eye associated with myopia probably does not cause retinal detachment, tears, holes, or breaks...

October 6, 2013 Posted in  Health Info

What is a macular hole?

Your doctor has diagnosed you having a macular hole. The retina is the sensing layer of tissue that lines the back of your eye. A specialized are of the retina, called the MACULA, is responsible for clear, detailed vision. The macula normally lies flat against the back of the eye, like film lining the back of a camera. A macular hole is an abnormal opening that forms at the center of the macular over a period of several weeks to months.

What are the symptoms of a macular hole?

In the early stages of hole formation, vision becomes blurred and distorted. If the progresses, a blind spot develops in the central vision, similar to the picture you would get if your camera film had a hole in it. Side vision remains normal, and there is no pain...

October 6, 2013 Posted in  Health Info

Age related macular degeneration (ARMD) is one of the most common causes of vision loss in patients more that 60 years old. This happens when the small blood vessels inside the eye begins to hard, which is usually associated with aging. The hardening causes the amount of oxygen and nutrients to decrease, causing the macula, the most active part of the retina, to loss function and hence central vision. This can be detected long before vision loss would occur.

Severity of ARMD varies widely, in worst cases, there is complete loss of central vision, making reading or driving impossible. For others, it only cause slight distortion. However, macular degeneration does not cause total blindness since it does not usually affect the peripheral vision.
What is the difference between wet and dry ma...

October 6, 2013 Posted in  Health Info

Low Vision is a bilateral impairment to vision that significantly impairs the functioning of the patient and cannot be adequately corrected with medical, surgical, therapy, conventional eyewear or contact lenses. It is often a loss of sharpness or acuity but may present as a loss of field of vision, light sensitivity, distorted vision or loss of contrast. Low vision often may occur as a result of birth defects, injury, the aging process or as a complication of disease.

Low vision means that even with regular glasses, contact lenses, medicine or surgery, people find everyday tasks difficult to achieve. Reading the mail, shopping, cooking, seeing the TV, and writing can seem challenging...

June 15, 2013 Posted in  Health Info

A cataract is a clouding of the lens inside the eye which leads to a decrease in vision. It is the most common cause of blindness and is conventionally treated with surgery. Visual loss occurs because opacification of the lens obstructs light from passing and being focused on to the retina at the back of the eye.

It is most commonly due to biological aging but there are a wide variety of other causes. Over time, yellow-brown pigment is deposited within the lens and this, together with disruption of the normal architecture of the lens fibers, leads to reduced transmission of light, which in turn leads to visual problems.

Those with cataract commonly experience difficulty appreciating colors and changes in contrast, driving, reading, recognizing faces, and experience problems coping with gl...

June 15, 2013 Posted in  Health Info

Understanding Strabismus

Strabismus or squint (also known as “wall-eye” or “cross-eye”) is a condition wherein the eyes are misaligned and are not looking in the same direction.

There are 6 muscles that move each eye in different directions. These movements are properly coordinated for both eyes. Strabismus occurs when the muscles fail to work together in synchrony.

Strabismus may be described depending on which direction the eye is turned.

Causes

There are different causes for strabismus in children.

Strabismus may be congenital or present at birth, the cause of which may be unknown, however it can run in some families.

Strabismus may also be due to significant errors of refraction, and as the child attempts to see clearly, the eyes turn.

In some children, poor vision in one eye...

June 15, 2013 Posted in  Health Info

All patients with uveitis need to take medication.  Most take medications that suppress inflammation and modify how the immune system works.  These medications may be in eye drops, given in a shot, taken by mouth (pills), or some combination of these treatments.  Sometimes the treatment will involve eye surgery while patients with chronic or severe forms of uveitis may require several years of immunosuppressive chemotherapy to protect their vision and get the illness into remission.

What are some of the uveitis related diseases?

They are Toxoplasmosis, Ocular Toxocariasis, Ocular Cysticercosis, Cytomegalovirus Infection of the Retina, Retinal Disease in the HIV-Infected Patient, Acute Retinal Necrosis Syndrome, Endogenous Fungal Infections of the Retina and Choroid, Pars Planitis, Sy...

June 15, 2013 Posted in  Health Info

Diabetic retinopathy, the most common diabetic eye disease, occurs when blood vessels in the retina change. Sometimes these vessels swell and leak fluid or even close off completely. In other cases, abnormal new blood vessels grow on the surface of the retina. Diabetic retinopathy usually affects both eyes. People who have diabetic retinopathy often don’t notice changes in their vision in the disease’s early stages. But as it progresses, diabetic retinopathy usually causes vision loss that in many cases cannot be reversed. As diabetic eye problems are left untreated, proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR) can develop...