Retina and Vitreos form the back part of the eyeball. The light rays enter from the front part of our eyes , pass through the cornea and the lens and then pass through the vitreous to finally come to a focus on our retina. Diseases that affect the form and function of vitreous and retina , ultimately affects our vision.
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The retina of our eyes is spread out at the back of the eye for the light rays to focus on it. Some diseases may lead to tear formation and subsequent detachment of the retina.
When the retina detachment occurs , the patient feels sudden painless loss of vision. This may be often accompanied by seeing flashes of light and a shower of black dots. Often , the feeling is like a curtain coming in front of the field of vision . Patients of Retinal Detachment must visit a Retina specialist at the earliest and get their surgery done for reattachment of the retina.
Surgery for Retinal Detachment involves first tying a silicone rubber belt around the eyeball on the outside and then operating upon the vitreous and the retina through three small openings in the eye. This is known as Pars Plana Vitrectomy or PPV. During PPV , vitreous is removed , retina is pushed back and then glued in place with multiple spots of eldolaser . In the end , Silicone Oil is injected inside the eye to keep the retina in place. The silicone oil is kept inside the eye for 2-3 months . Once the doctor feels that the retina is saecurely in place , another surgery is done to remove the Silicone Oil.
Visual recovery after Retinal Detachment surgery varies from patient to patient according to the health of the retina.
Central Serous Retinopathy (CSR) is a disease in which , fluid accumulates under the point of finest vision in our retina. This leads to haziness distortion in vision .
Generally CSR resolves all on it's own but may need some medication to assist it's healing.
CSR may recur after many months or many years .
ARMD , as the name suggests , happens due to advancing age. There is degeneration of the layers of the retina immediately beneath the point of finest vision ( Macula) . There may also be growth of abnormal blood vessels under the macula . Sometimes these blood vessels start to bleed and lead to loss of central vision .
Green Laser Photocoagulation , Anti-VEGF injections and Photodynamic Therapy (PDT) are used to treat ARMD.
Treatment and results of treatment depend upon the health of the retina to begin with. Treatment may not improve vision in a majority of the patients but the aim is to maintain vision for as long as possible.
Children who are born before time may have to be kept under Oxygen during the first few weeks of their life. Such children may suffer from a disease called Retinopathy of Prematurity , in which the retina of the eye develops abnormal blood vessels and also undergoes shortening and detachment. Meticulous efforts go into examination and treatment of these young children to prevent as much loss of vision as possible.