Cataracts
Cataracts develop when the clear natural eye lens located behind your pupil becomes opaque, damaging your central vision and then your peripheral eyesight. Blurry vision, light sensitivity, haloing around lights and double vision are common symptoms. People over 65 are the most at risk for cataracts, but this eye disease can appear in babies and younger adults due to congenital defect, injury or illness. Excessive exposure to the sun, radiation, UV light, alcohol and smoking can increase your chances of developing cataracts.
Regular eye exams often catch cataracts early using a slit lamp microscope to view parts of the eye. Cataract surgery removes the clouded lens and replaces it with an intraocular lens (IOL) implant to restore clear vision.
Diabetic Retinopathy
Uncontrolled diabetes can wreak havoc on multiple body areas, including your eyes. Long-term high blood sugar levels damage the eyes, causing blood vessels inside the retina (which lines the back of your eye) to break and leak into the eye’s fluid, resulting in blurred vision and a reddish hue. These weakened vessels may even block fluid flow altogether, increasing pressure in the center of the retina where the macula lives and distorting your vision.
The first three stages of diabetic retinopathy may not require treatment. Scatter laser surgery is often needed for the fourth stage, proliferative retinopathy. The procedure shrinks abnormal blood vessels to save the rest of your eyesight. Peripheral vision may be damaged permanently. Most of the vision loss caused by diabetes is preventable with early detection through regular dilated eye exams and proper diabetes management.
Glaucoma
The aqueous humor is the fluid in your eyes that maintains shape and ensures the eye is lubricated. Glaucoma occurs when excess fluid or poor drainage causes pressure to rise and damage the optic nerve responsible for sending signals for your brain to turn into images. Vision loss from this eye disease starts around the outer edges of your eyesight. The increased eye pressure is not typically painful, which means the initial signs of glaucoma usually go unnoticed without regular eye exams.
It’s critical to treat glaucoma as soon as possible with laser trabeculoplasty, medications, conventional surgery or a combination of treatments to delay disease progression. These treatments can’t restore lost eyesight but can prevent further vision loss.
Age-Related Macular Degeneration
This eye disease occurs when the macula, which is located at the center of your retina, deteriorates as you get older, damaging your central vision. People with age-related macular degeneration (AMD) may see a blurry or dark circle instead of the object in front of them. There are two variations of this eye disease: wet and dry. Dry AMD progresses slowly, but wet AMD causes bleeding in and underneath the retina and requires immediate treatment to salvage vision.
AMD is the leading cause of blindness in Canadians 55 and older. It impairs your ability to drive, read or perform any activity that requires detailed vision.
Schedule a Comprehensive Eye Exam
Any change in your eyesight is cause for an eye exam. Don’t risk your vision by putting it off. Call or email our team at Bochner Eye Institute in Toronto to schedule your eye exam today.