Your eye consists of many different parts that take in light and send messages to your brain. How well your eye's function, as well as the health of them, is dependent upon each of these components functioning accordingly. If one part of your eye has an infection or disease, you may have symptoms including pain and visual disturbances, like seeing halos. In some cases, it impacts your visual acuity. At Anderson Ophthalmology Clinic, serving the San Diego area and surrounding region, we optimize both your vision and eye health, even if you have a vitreoretinal disorder.
Definition of Vitreoretinal
Vitreoretinal is a term that pertains to the vitreous fluid in the eye and the retina. This portion of your eye is in the back. The fluid is a clear, gel-like substance that helps your eye maintain its shape. The retina, on the other hand, is the portion of your eye that receives light, so your optic nerve may send the image to your brain. Your macula is the center of your retina. The macula is the part of your eye where light focuses on. It's responsible for making your vision both sharp and clear.
Signs of Vitreoretinal Disorders
- Night blindness
- Floaters, spots, or flashes of light
- Loss of central or peripheral vision
- Distorted words when reading
- Straight lines appear wavy
- Light sensitivity
Night blindness is a common symptom of vitreoretinal disorders. You might have floaters or see spots or flashes of light. Sometimes, you see wavy lines in your central vision. Some people notice they start to lose their central or peripheral vision. You may lose your vision suddenly or see distorted words when you're reading. You could experience visual distortions such as straight lines appearing wavy. Sometimes, individuals with a disorder that affects their retina or vitreous fluid have extreme light sensitivity.
Types of Vitreoretinal Disorders
Some of the main vitreoretinal disorders include macular degeneration, retinal tears, retinal detachment, macular holes, and diabetic retinopathy. You could either have dry or wet macular degeneration. Dry macular degeneration is the more common type and causes blurred or reduced central vision. It arises as a result of your macula thinning. Wet macular degeneration, on the other hand, stems from abnormal vessels in your eye leaking fluid or blood. The liquid enters into your macular, which affects your central vision.
Retina tears occur when the retina of the eye has a tear. It increases your risk of your retina detaching completely and you suffering from severe vision loss. You may notice you have floaters or black spots in your vision. However, if you have any hemorrhaging, the symptoms will be must worse.
Retinal detachment could occur as well. This happens when the retina separates from the tissue that supports it. Your retina plays a vital role in your vision, so it's possible to lose your vision if it detaches. You could have a tear, break, or hole that leads to detachment. It's also possible for an injury, inflammation, or abnormalities to cause it, Generally, this won't cause you any pain.
You may have a macular hole, which is when the macula has a small break. If you have this issue, you may have blurred or distorted vision.
Diabetic retinopathy is a condition that affects diabetics. It's a problem caused by damage to the blood vessels in your retina. In most cases, this affects both eyes simultaneously.
Treatment for Vitreoretinal Disorders
In some cases, Dr. Nathan is able to manage your symptoms with the use of corrective eyewear, such as with macular degeneration. However, as your condition worsens, you might need medication or surgery. You could need an injection into the vitreous of your eye to stop new blood vessels from forming.
We're also able to provide surgery to correct some vitreoretinal disorders. We may need to use surgical measures to remove substances from your eye, scarring, or a foreign object. We could also use surgery as a method to repair the retinal detachment.
Schedule an appointment with Anderson Ophthalmology Clinic, serving San Diego and the nearby region, by calling 800-462-8749.