Treatment of Eye Disease

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One of the biggest dangers of eye diseases is that they can present no visual symptoms until the disease has progressed substantially. This really enforces the necessity of attending your routine eye exams. By neglecting these exams, you put your self at risk of unknowingly developing a serious ocular issue. Optometrists will look for early stage warning signs during your check up, allowing for detection and diagnosis at a much earlier date, greatly increasing the treatment options at your disposal, and preservation of your vision.

Below, you will find some of the most common ocular diseases, all of which we can test for here at Clear View Eye Care.

• Glaucoma is one disease that is easily tested for, however, can still cause extreme vision loss. Glaucoma raises the pressure in your eye, which, if left untreated, can damage your optic nerve. This is one of the most common causes of blindness in North America, and is especially prevalent in diabetic patients. In fact, your eye doctor can often tell if you are diabetic before your physician can, due to its relationship with eye pressure, and potentially, glaucoma.

• Cataract is an accumulation of certain proteins within the lens of your eye, which causes clouding of your lens. Early stage symptoms are typically color distortion, or hazy vision. This is especially noticeable in bright light, and cataract patients will typically notice halos or glare around things like street lamps, or traffic lights. Glasses may help with cataracts in the early stages, but the best treatment option is surgery. The surgical procedure is very straight forward, and is an outpatient procedure, meaning you go home the same day as your surgery.

• Keratoconus is a vision disorder that occurs when the normally round cornea (the front part of the eye) becomes thin and irregular (cone) shaped. This abnormal shape prevents the light entering the eye from being focused correctly on the retina and causes distortion of vision. Eyeglasses or soft contact lenses may be used to correct the mild nearsightedness and astigmatism that is caused by the early stages for keratoconus. As the disorder progresses and cornea continues to thin and change shape, rigid gas permeable or scleral contact lenses can be prescribed to correct vision adequately. In most cases, this is adequate. The contact lenses must be carefully fitted, and frequent checkups and lens changes may be needed to achieve and maintain good vision. In a few cases, a corneal transplant, cross linking, or Intacs is necessary. However, even after a corneal procedure, eyeglasses or contact lenses are often still needed to correct vision.

• Amblyopia is commonly known as lazy-eye. With Amblyopia, vision in one eye will get worse, causing your brain to favor your stronger eye over the weaker one. Amblyopia most often occurs in young children aged 0-6, but could still potentially arise in older individuals as well. Typically, amblyopia is caused by a lid droop, crossed eyes (strabismus), tumors, among other factors. As with most ocular issues, if left untreated, it can cause much more serious issues later in life, and becomes substantially more difficult to correct.

• Diabetic Retinopathy Unfortunately, glaucoma is not the only eye disease that can occur as a result of diabetes. With diabetic retinopathy, diabetes causes the blood vessels of your retina to get damaged, resulting in dark or blurred spots across your visual field. Eventually, diabetic retinopathy can cause blindness if left untreated. The best form of treatment/prevention for diabetic retinopathy is to maintain your ideal level of blood sugar, and to attend annual eye examinations.

• Dry Eye Syndrome or chronic dry eye, can be caused by issues with tear production or problems with your tear drainage system. Dry eye can be incredibly uncomfortable. The symptoms are often amplified by dry and dusty environments, computer use, and/or systemic diseases. Many patients with allergies often attribute their symptoms to these allergies, while unfortunately missing the root of the problem. There are a number of innovative treatment options for dry eye that can provide substantial relief of the extremely uncomfortable symptoms.