Common Eye Problems

Common Eye Problems

The eye, like most all other parts of the body, is subject to a variety of conditions that fall under the following categories: infection (e.g, caused by bacteria, viruses, and fungi), inflammation, injury (trauma), heredity, aging changes, and degeneration.

While most of us during our lifetime may only suffer from a mild infection or inflammation in the eye(s), each part of the eye is subject to each of these categories of problems and, many times, several parts of the eye(s) are involved. For example, pink eye (conjunctivitis) is an eye infection, usually caused by viruses, that is common in children but can affect people of all ages. Contact lens wearers can get inflammation of the eye called contact lens solution toxicity due to sensitivity to the contact lens solution. A corneal abrasion (scratch of the cornea) is the result of injury to the cornea and, depending on the type of injury, may result in recurrent corneal erosion. Blepharitis is an inflammatory condition that can affect the upper eyelid(s), the lower eyelid(s), and even the conjunctiva (surface of the eye). Aging changes in the eye result in cataracts, flashes and floaters, and presbyopia.

Blepharitis

refers to chronic inflammation of the eyelids. Blepharitis is one of the most common disorder of the eye and is often the underlying reason for eye discomfort, redness and tearing. Other eye symptoms of blepharitis include: Burning, itching, light sensitivity, and an irritating, sandy, gritty sensation that is worse upon awakening.

Eyelid Inflammation Causes

Blepharitis may be caused by inflammation, bacteria, allergies, tumors, environmental conditions, or it may be related to systemic disease.

• Inflammatory or allergic blepharitis results in increased shedding of skin cells near your eyelids.
• Allergic blepharitis may be caused by irritants in the atmosphere (for example, chemicals at work) or by many medications, either ocular or systemic. In many people, blepharitis is caused by exposure to animals such as a dog or cat.
• The ulcerative form (infectious blepharitis) often results in infectious yellowish or greenish discharge.
• Blepharitis may be caused by systemic medical conditions or skin cancers of various types.

Symptoms:
The lids may be red and may have ulcerative, non-healing areas which may actually bleed.

• Vision is usually normal, although a poor tear film often blurs vision, causing varying amounts of fluctuating vision during the day.
• Redness, warmth, and swelling in advanced cases may also be noted.

In allergic blepharitis, the lids may appear dark like raccoon eyes. This is called an "allergic shiner" and is very common in children.

• Flaking and eyelid matting or "gluing" of the lashes are common.

Eyelid Inflammation Treatment

• Apply warm moist compresses to your eyelids for 10-20 minutes four times per day to cleanse them and to reduce discomfort. If you want to keep the compresses warm for a longer period of time, you may want to place a small hot water bottle over the compress. Using a clean wash towel for each cleansing is important. Be careful to avoid rubbing or scratching your eyes.
• Using a cotton swab, carefully cleanse the lid margins with a swab moistened with dilute baby shampoo or a baby body wash solution in the morning and at bedtime.
• Artificial tears may also make the eyes feel more comfortable.

Cataracts

The term cataract is derived from the Greek word cataractos, which describes rapidly running water. When water is turbulent, it is transformed from a clear medium to white and cloudy. Keen Greek observers noticed similar-appearing changes in the eye and attributed visual loss from "cataracts" as an accumulation of this turbulent fluid, having no knowledge of the anatomy of the eye or the status or importance of the lens.

Cataract development is usually a very gradual process of normal aging but can occasionally occur rapidly. Many people are in fact unaware that they have cataracts because the changes in their vision have been so gradual. Cataracts commonly affect both eyes, but it is not uncommon for cataracts in one eye to advance more rapidly. Cataracts are very common, affecting roughly 60% of people over the age of 60, and over 1.5 million cataract surgeries are performed in the United States each year.

Causes

The lens is made mostly of water and protein. Specific proteins within the lens are responsible for maintaining its clarity. Over many years, the structures of these lens proteins are altered, ultimately leading to a gradual clouding of the lens. Rarely, cataracts can present at birth or in early childhood as a result of hereditary enzyme defects, and severe trauma to the eye, eye surgery, or intraocular inflammation can also cause cataracts to occur earlier in life. Other factors that may lead to development of cataracts at an earlier age include excessive ultraviolet-light exposure, diabetes, smoking, or the use of certain medications, such as oral, topical, or inhaled steroids. Other medications that are more weakly associated with cataracts include the long-term use of statins and phenothiazines.

Symptoms

Cataracts may cause a variety of complaints and visual changes, including blurred vision, difficulty with glare (often with bright sun or automobile headlights while driving at night), dulled color vision, increased nearsightedness accompanied by frequent changes in eyeglass prescription, and occasionally double vision in one eye.

Treatment

Surgery

There are three basic techniques for cataract surgery:

* Phacoemulsification: This is the most common form of cataract removal as explained above. In this most modern method, cataract surgery can usually be performed in less than 30 minutes and usually requires only minimal sedation and numbing drops, no stitches to close the wound, and no eye patch after surgery.

* Extracapsular cataract surgery: This procedure is used mainly for very advanced cataracts where the lens is too dense to dissolve into fragments (phacoemulsify) or in facilities that do not have phacoemulsification technology. This technique requires a larger incision so that the cataract can be removed in one piece without being fragmented inside the eye. An artificial lens is placed in the same capsular bag as with the phacoemulsification technique. This surgical technique requires a various number of sutures to close the larger wound, and visual recovery is often slower. Extracapsular cataract extraction usually requires an injection of numbing medication around the eye and an eye patch after surgery.

* Intracapsular cataract surgery: This surgical technique requires an even larger wound than extracapsular surgery, and the surgeon removes the entire lens and the surrounding capsule together. This technique requires the intraocular lens to be placed in a different location, in front of the iris. This method is rarely used today but can be still be useful in cases of significant trauma.