Don’t Neglect Your Eyes Article

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Don’t Neglect Your Eyes

Our sense of sight is a precious gift, one we all hope to maintain for a lifetime. But some conditions can affect our eyes, leading to vision difficulties and even blindness.

Author: Sara Goldstein

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Some of these can be treated medically, and others require surgery. Regular visits to an ophthalmologist can help you detect any problems early enough for treatment to be effective.

Diabetic Retinopathy

A complication of diabetes, diabetic retinopathy is a progressive disease that causes abnormal growth of the blood vessels in the retina. This can lead to bleeding into the eye. If left untreated, diabetic retinopathy can lead to blindness. If you have diabetes, you should have an eye exam at least once a year, and more often if recommended by your doctor, so that any signs of this disorder can be detected and treated immediately.

Glaucoma

While the exact cause of glaucoma is unknown, one important risk factor is an increased level of pressure in the eyeball. At your regular appointment with your eye doctor, you should be screened for glaucoma. Untreated glaucoma can result in damage to the optic nerve, and is the second leading cause of blindness.

Ptosis

Ptosis is literally a drooping eyelid. Ptosis can occur because of aging, damage to the nerves of the eyelid, or can be an inherited condition. If it occurs as a symptom of an underlying illness, treatment of the illness can correct the drooping. In other cases, surgery is required to correct ptosis.

Macular Degeneration

Macular degeneration is the leading cause of blindness in those over the age of sixty-five. The macula is the center of the retina, and allows us to experience sharp, clear, focused vision. The degeneration of this part of the retina leads to a usually slow loss of vision. Macular degeneration occurs more commonly in women, people with certain risk factors such as smoking and obesity, and also seems to occur in families.

While there is no cure for macular degeneration, some treatments have been found to be effective if the condition is discovered in its early stages. Your ophthalmologist can also recommend preventative measures, such as use of certain vitamins and supplements, that many doctors think can help slow or prevent macular degeneration.

Avoiding Eye Problems

Regular visits to your eye doctor are very important for early diagnosis of all these conditions, as well as other potentially serious disorders of the eye. Yearly visits should include screenings for glaucoma as well as other possible problems.

About Author

In the San Francisco, California area, Dr. Robert Filer, MD, is an experienced, board certified ophthalmologist. If you need to schedule a regular appointment, or are concerned about any vision problems you might be experiencing, please call us at 800-481-4171 to schedule an appointment or a consultation. We’ll be happy to answer any of your questions.

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