Most people have problems with their eyes at some point during their lives. If you are suddenly faced with an eye problem or your vision gets gradually worse, chances are, you probably are suffering from a common eye disorder. Learn more about the most common eye disorders below to see if the problems sound familiar to you and to find out the best treatment option.
Diabetic Retinopathy
Diabetic retinopathy develops when there is damage to the blood vessel of the retina. It develops in people who have type 1 or type 2 diabetes and a history of uncontrolled high blood sugar. The condition usually starts with blurred vision or dark spots in your field of vision and may eventually result in blindness.
The best way to avoid diabetic retinopathy is to control your blood sugars and to get your eyes checked annually. Other preventive ways are to quit smoking and to get regular exercise. If you do have the condition, proper care can reduce any complications. However, when you have advanced diabetic retinopathy, you may need photocoagulation surgery to help prevent vision loss.
Cataracts
A cataract is a clouding that forms in the lens of your eye. It causes blurry and tinted vision. If you have a cataract, you may feel like you are looking through a fogged-up window and “haloes” surrounding objects you are looking at. You may also experience trouble seeing at night, seeing colors as faded, and double vision. The condition mainly caused by smoking, ultraviolet radiation, certain diseases, trauma, and overproduction of oxidants.
When left untreated, cataracts can lead to blindness. Surgery is the most effective treatment. During the surgery, the damaged lens is replaced with an artificial lens. However, if you do not want to undergo surgery, you may be recommended to use stronger eyeglasses, sunglasses with an anti-glare coating, or magnifying glasses.
Uveitis (Eye Inflammation)
Uveitis is an eye inflammation affecting the middle layer of the eye (the uvea). The signs often appear suddenly and get worse quite rapidly; these signs include pain, eye redness, light sensitivity, and cloudy vision. The most common causes of uveitis are an injury, infection, and inflammatory or autoimmune disease. In some cases, the cause cannot be identified.
It is important to treat uveitis as early as possible to prevent complications. The condition can be serious and result in permanent vision loss. The treatment usually involves antibiotics if there is an infection, corticosteroid medications to treat inflammation, immunosuppressant if there’s a risk of vision loss, and mydriatic eye drops to dilate the pupil and help your eye to heal.
Color Blindness
Also known as a color deficiency, color blindness happens when you cannot see colors in a normal way. There are actually only a few people who are completely color blind. In fact, most people with color blindness can actually see colors. Yet, it is hard for them to differentiate certain colors, usually between reds and greens or blues and yellows. People with total color blindness (achromatopsia) can only see the world in black and white or shades of gray. Most of the time, this condition is caused by genes inherited by your parents, but there are also other causes, such as damage to the optic nerve or damage to parts of your brain that process color information. If you were born with color blindness, there is currently no cure to treat it. However, there are special glasses and contact lenses that may help.
Glaucoma
Glaucoma causes damage to the optic nerve in your eyes and usually linked to a build-up of pressure inside your eye. It is a common problem that usually affects adults. If left untreated, you may lose your vision and eventually become blind. If you have glaucoma, you may experience eye redness, nausea, pain, narrowed vision, and seeing halos around lights. The treatment usually involves eye drops, laser surgery, or microsurgery (trabeculectomy).
Do you think that you may suffer from any of the conditions above? You should go see a doctor and get your eyes diagnosed. If you want to improve your vision in the year 2020, go check out MyMediTravel to find the best doctors that will treat your eye problems.
