Taking Care Of Your Retina

1. Taking Care Of Your Retina

2. Synopsis O Eye Health – Caring for your Retina O Diabetes and the prevention of Retinal Problems O Retina Problems can be Associated with Age O Latest Advances in Retina Treatments for Vision Loss

3. Eye Health – Caring for your Retina Retina detachment can occur at any time due to sporting injuries, vehicular accidents and general health problems and especially diabetes. The retinarequires a steady normal blood flow to perform correctly and therefore any interruption to this such as blood pressure elevation will cause problems. Retinopathy, being damage to the retina can cause vision impairment.Diabetic retinopathy is the cause of blindness in roughly 4%-5% of the world population and exceptional care should be taken by diabetics and coupled with frequent inspections of the retina to check pressures etc. Diabetics with impaired vision need to be especially mindful of any trauma which might affect the retina. Damaged blood vessels sometimes manifested at the back of the eye is often the cause of retinal detachment or possibly a tear in the retina. A retinal tear will allow fluids to seep behind the eye and is often the cause of retinal detachment. This tare can be surgically repaired using lasers which is one method. The lasers will heal the tear restoring the eye to a normal function after a while. High blood pressures can cause vitreous hemorrhage and be present even in younger people. Any trauma especially can cause vitreous hemorrhage and retinal detachment. Especially seen on older people, macular degeneration can cause blurred or impaired vision of some form. A diagnosis of this can only be seen by an eye examination which is absolutely necessary as one grows older. O O

4. Diabetes and the prevention of Retinal Problems The intolerance of our body to combat blood sugar levels, and there are many reasons, but generally our inability to produce enough insulin can affect our eyes. It is also true then that our general health, and any bodily infections can cause harm to the eyes. In general, retinopathy, a chronic eye disease results from the damaging effects of poorly controlled blood sugar affecting the delicate blood vessels in the eye and leads to eventual blindness. This chronic disease has affected patients from as young as 20 to 64 years of age in the US. Badly swollen blood vessels caused by poorly controlled sugar levels which lead to high blood pressure can burst the blood vessels in the eye. Due to this effect, fluid becomes present behind the retina often causing retinal detachment and in some case blindness. Dr Shane and his team who approach these patients with courtesy passion and respect have earned his practice a name and is known far and wide in many states. Using laser treatment, Dr Shane is able to repair these damaged retinas however diabetic patients are advised to visit the American academy of ophthalmology website for more information at: http://www.asrs.org/patients/retinal- diseases/3/diabetic-retinopathy. Even these laser techniques cause irreversible burns on the retina and therefore diabetic patients are continually suffering from vision loss. O O

5. Retina Problems can be Associated with Age Many patients think they are becoming blind when a detached retina occurs. Indeed, if they do not have it attended to speedily this can well be the end result. Dr Shane is in practice to specifically examine all aspects of the eye whilst being a retina specialist he would diagnose any disease, including vitreous disease with a detailed eye examination. Dr Shane is a vitreoretinalsurgeon. Another aspect of the ophthalmologist is to check for cataracts in the eye, basically a clumping of protein can become larger over time. They say time heals all things however, age is against you as far as the eyes go. The older we get a clouding of the lens takes place known as cataracts. They can affect the picture presented to the back of the. If retinal detachment is advanced, it will make the picture received by the retina somewhat less sharp. There is a twofold problem with cataracts. The cloudier the lens becomes; the less light is received by the retina and therefore we cannot see so well. Images become blurry and bright lights such as car headlights when driving at night, seem starry and dazzle the eye A detached retina, which has pulled away from the soft tissue behind the eye, needs attention. Dr Shane will tell you that the eye has the final decision on what is presented to the brain and therefore the eye must be 100% correct in its retinal scan as possible. O O

6. Latest Advances in Retina Treatments for Vision Loss A brand new and advanced treatment for vision loss includes the development in imaging technology. This is commonly referred to as Optical Coherence Tomography or OTC. By using this OTC imaging photography, surgeons and ophthalmologists have been able to visualize any changes in the eye resulting in earlier threatened retinopathy. There are also some newer treatments which involve the injection into the retina to reduce swelling. This new method leaves no significant traces or burns as do the lasers. Dr Shane's best comment is asking patients "Have you ever been told there is a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow?" We all know that rainbows do not exist as tangible objects in the world, instead, it is an image created by the retina in the eye, a wonderful and delicate structure. The retina is responsible for all the color we see in our world and therefore, one could unanimously say it is worth a pot of gold. Understanding the structure of the retina, we could say it is similar to the inside lining of a basketball. It has the surface area of a silver dollar and has 150 million cells called photoreceptors. These photoreceptors create images, translate the colors and send the image, possibly akin to the most complex transmission nerve impulse system, as IT professionals might call it, to the brain where it is interpreted and where they are processed into images. O O

7. The End For more details, please visit: http://www.retinacareflorida.com/