Get Better Understanding on the Causes of Retinal Damage

The retina is a thin layer of tissue that lines the back of the eye on the inside that senses light and sends images to your brain, thereby enabling you to see things. If we talk about the most common ailments of the eyes then it is retina damage. The most frequent causes of retinal lesions are those associated with old age, light, or trauma.

Retinal problems may damage this vital tissue. There are retinal disorders that can affect your vision, and some can be serious enough to cause blindness.

Some of the retinal diseases including

Macular Degeneration – This eye disorder can affect old people and it can destroy your sharp, central vision.

Diabetic Eye Disease – Damage to the blood vessels and tissue of the retina due to diabetes.

Retinal Detachment- In this type of retinal disorder the retina is pulled away from the back of the eye.

Retinoblastoma – Cancer of the retina. It is most common in young children.

Macular Pucker – Scar tissue on the macula

Macular Hole – A small break in the macula that usually occurs in people over 60.

Floaters – Specks in your field of vision.

The early effects of retina damage may or may not display noticeable vision changes. If the damage is near the macula, one could notice various visual effects such as general poor vision, distortion of images such as straight lines appearing wavy, blurry spots in one’s central vision, and/or vision with images appearing and disappearing. Typical symptoms of a damaged retina include:

Dim central vision

Distorted central vision

Straight lines that appear wavy

Spots in the central vision that may appear blurry or dark

Images that appear then disappear

Double Vision

Floaters

Flashing Lights

Halos Appear Around Light Sources

Grey “Curtain” Blocking Your Vision

Peripheral Shadows

Blind Spot

Overall Decrease in Quality of Vision

Besides aging, physical injury, and diseases that cause retina damage, there are a few other things that can cause the condition:

Chronic stress

Steroidal medication

Drug misuse

Heart disease

Other circulatory issues

If retinal damage does not get timely and proper treatment, permanent vision loss may occur. If you experience any symptoms of a damaged retina, contact Dr. Ankit Desai at (815)714-9115 or book your appointment online right away.