The retina, located at the back of the eye, contains rods and cones that send visual information to the brain. Retinal diseases include diabetic retinopathy, age-related macular degeneration, retinal detachment, eye cancer, and hereditary retinal degenerations, which can lead to partial or total blindness. Management of blood sugar levels and annual eye exams can prevent diabetic retinopathy. Age-related macular degeneration causes loss of central vision, while retinal detachment can lead to permanent vision loss. Other retinal diseases include specific eye cancers and inherited diseases like retinitis pigmentosa.
Responsible for sending important codes to the brain so it can process visual images, the retina is located at the back of the eye and contains specialized photoreceptor cells. The cells are called rods and cones and make up the complex tissue of the retina. There are many retinal diseases that can hamper the way a person sees and processes visual information. The main types of retinal diseases are diabetic retinopathy, age-related macular degeneration, retinal detachment, eye cancer, and hereditary retinal degenerations. These disorders can lead to partial or total blindness.
Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is a leading cause of blindness. It is the result of complications from diabetes, either type 1 or type 2. When a person’s blood sugar is not controlled, their retinal blood vessels can become damaged. This type of retinal disease often goes unnoticed, but it can be prevented if you manage your blood sugar levels and have scheduled annual eye exams.
One of the most common retinal diseases that causes vision loss in people 65 and older is age-related macular degeneration. This disease causes loss of central vision and leaves only peripheral vision intact. It comes in two forms: wet or neovascular; and dry, or non-neovascular. Wet macular degeneration causes new blood vessels to grow in parts of the eye that shouldn’t have blood vessels. Dry macular degeneration is caused by the thinning and aging of macular tissues and typically causes yellow patches around a person’s macula.
Retinal detachment occurs when the retina becomes separated from the choroids, the layer of blood vessels that supply nutrients and oxygen to the retina. When this disease occurs, the eye does not get the necessary oxygen. This can lead to permanent vision loss, but early diagnosis and treatment can prevent this disease from progressing.
Other types of retinal disease include specific eye cancers, such as retinoblastoma and ocular melanoma. Retinoblastoma commonly affects children and is a cancer that develops in the retina. It occurs when nerve cells in the retina have genetic mutations that cause a mass of cells, called a tumor, to grow inside the eye. Eye melanoma is similar to skin cancer and develops in the cells of the eye that produce melanin. This disease is sometimes difficult to detect because it doesn’t have many early signs or symptoms.
Some people inherit retinal diseases from their family gene pool. An example of this type of disease is retinitis pigmentosa, which damages the retina and leads to incurable blindness. Early symptoms of this retinal disease typically include decreased vision at night or in low light conditions, as well as loss of peripheral vision. Other inherited retinal diseases include cone dystrophy, retinoschesis, and Usher syndrome.
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