Eye Conditions
Cataracts--Cataracts are a normal change in the crystalline lens inside the eye. A cataract usually occurs with age and over 85% of the population over the age of 60 will have a cataract. As the lens ages, it yellows and hazes causing blurred vision, decreased ability to see color, and seeing a "film"over the eyes. Cataracts also cause glare, especially during night driving with bright headlights and street lights. Cataracts are usually slowly progressive and surgical removal is the only way to improve your vision if you have one that is affecting your vision.
Computer Vision Syndrome--Our visual system was not designed to stare at a computer all day. Our eyes can become very strained if we do not take the proper precautions to rest our eyes and our focusing abilities. We recommend the 20/20/20 rule. Every 20 minutes, refocus your eyes at least 20 feet away from your computer for about 20 seconds. This changes your focusing and relaxes your eyes a little. This can reduce the tired, strained feeling you have at the end of the day. If this still doesn't help, you may want to visit your optometrist and discuss a prescription for computer glasses to relax your eyes at work.
Diabetes--Diabetes can cause dramatic changes within your eye, and if left unmonitored and untreated, can lead to blindness. The fluctuation of blood sugar levels within the body leads to weakness and damage of blood vessels. Your eyes have many small blood vessels inside of them that can become damaged by diabetes. This damage causes leakage of fluid and blood that can then damage the tissues surrounding the vessels. If the vessels are damaged permanently, they will not get oxygen to the tissues of the eye and this causes new blood vessels to try and form. These new vessels are weak and break easily causing more fluid and more bleeding. Obviously, it is of utmost importance to monitor and maintain a healthy blood sugar level and receive at least a yearly eye exam.
Dilation of the eye--The pupil, the dark area in the center of the eye, is both the window out, for you to see, and the window in, for your optometrist to see. Under normal circumstances, when a light is shined in the pupil, the muscles in the iris (the colored part) contract and cause the pupil to become smaller. This is helping you see better and decreases the amount of bright light getting into your eye, but makes it very difficult to see inside. Dilating drops temporarily render the muscles of the iris unable to contract. This leaves the pupil larger, and the doctor can then see more of the inside of the eye including the periphery and the blood vessels. While the side effects (light sensitivity and decreased ability to focus up close) are annoying, they do not last more than about 3-4 hours.
Flashes and Floaters--The vitreous is a gel inside the eye that keeps the eye round and whole. This gel is a lot like jello, and as we age it will liquify, change shape, and pieces of the vitreous may break off. These pieces of jello floating around inside the gel are called floaters. They can range anywhere from small spots, or gnats, to long lines, to large spiderwebs. Floaters are very common and are part of aging, but new floaters, a lot of floaters at one time, or floaters associated with flashes of light are not common and should be checked out by an eye care professional immediately. The vitreous is attached to the back retina of the eye. If a piece liquifies and pulls away from where it is attached, it can pull some of the retina along with it. This usually occurs with a bright flash of light and can be followed then by a new floater, or a bunch of new floaters. If this occurs, you should be dilated immediately to be sure there is not a hole, or tear in the retina caused by the liquifying vitreous. If there is a tear, you will not feel it. If we do find a hole or tear, it is easily fixed with laser surgery by a retinal Ophthalmologist.
Glaucoma--This is a progressive disease of the eye that can lead to blindness if not treated. Glaucoma initially affects your peripheral vision, but will slowly work inward and affect your central vision if it becomes severe. Glaucoma most often works slowly and silently, with no pain or side effects, so a regular eye exam is very important. Basically, glaucoma is a higher than normal fluid pressure inside of the eye that eventually damages the optic nerve and causes loss of side vision. High pressure is not just pressure over 21, although this is the most common type of glaucoma. Unfortunately, there are low pressure glaucomas that occur as well. Even if your pressure is low, we also must monitor the health of the optic nerve yearly to be sure there is no change or damage. Fortunately, treatment options do exist to reduce the progression of glaucoma. There are many eye drops used to decrease the eye pressure and help reduce the damage to the optic nerve. Recent studies have now shown that many individuals can benefit from these eye drops as a preventative measure if they are found to have dangerously high pressures at a regular eye exam.
Macular Degeneration--The macula is the central area of the retina that controls central vision. This is the area of the eye you are using to look at this computer screen. Usually one of the first signs of damage is distortion to the vision. Patients usually see distortion in straight edges, like door frames. There are two types of macular degeneration, or damage to the macula.
Dry macular degeneration is more common and causes slow, progressive changes to vision. The visual loss is usually mild in the dry kind, but there is no cure for it yet. Treatment usually consists of adding a multivitamin with anti-oxidants, specifically lutein and zeazanthin, if you are a non-smoker. Smoking does increase your risk and will increase the progression of the disease by 30%!! Smokers are encouraged to quit and begin a multivitamin that does not contain beta-carotene. It has been shown that beta-carotene and smoking increases the risk of lung cancer.
Wet macular degeneration occurs in less than 10% of people with macular degeneration, but is a much more severe form. Decreased oxygen to the macular area of the eye causes new blood vessels to form. As these new vessels are weak, they tend to leak and the fluid and bleeding causes damage to the macular cells. This is what leads to the "black spot in the middle of your vision". Laser and medication treatments are available for people with wet macular degeneration, however the visual outcomes can be poor.
Ocular Migraine--This usually appears as an arc-shaped light in the vision that does not move and usually blocks the vision for a period of time, not lasting more than about an hour. A true ocular or ophthalmic migraine does not have a headache associated with it. It is usually just weird lights that affect vision and then vision returns and is normal and unchanged. We do not completely understand why these migraines occur and cannot predict when they will appear. If you have any flashes of light or changes in vision it is important to get your eyes checked immediately to rule out a dangerous cause, like a retinal detachment.
Ophthalmologist--An ophthalmologist is a medical doctor who specializes in eye health. He or she has completed a four-year undergraduate program and a four-year medical school program, completing a medical doctor (MD) or doctor of osteopathy (DO) degree. After medical school, a three-year residency in ophthalmology is required to become an ophthalmologist. Most often, ophthalmologists provide care in cases of eye disease and invasive surgical procedures.
Optometrist--An optometrist is an independent health care provider who examines, diagnoses, and treats disorders and diseases within the visual system, the eye, and related systemic conditions. This may be done with glasses or contact lenses, medications, or non-invasive surgical techniques (like removing a foreign body from the eye). An optometrist completes a four-year undergraduate program, receiving a Bachelor's degree in a related field, and then a four-year professional program at an optometry school, resulting in a Doctor of Optometry (OD) degree.
Retinal Detachment--A retinal detachment occurs when the retina tears away from the underlying blood vessel supply of your eye (the choroid). This can happen with trauma, or unfortunately, it can happen spontaneously with no apparant cause. There are risk factors that make some people more prone to a detachment. Being very near-sighted means that your eye is essentially longer than a far-sighted eye. This longer eye has a more stretched retina and therefore, a somewhat thinner retina. A very near-sighted person, that has a thinner retina, has a much higher chance of having a retinal detachment and should get their eyes dilated every year. The main signs and symptoms of a retinal detachment are flashes of light and the appearance of a "curtain or veil" coming down and blocking your vision. It usually occurs in one eye only and there will be no pain associated with it. If you experience any of these symptoms, you should see your primary eye care specialist immediately.