eye diseases

#Eye diseases

Uveitis

By Dr. Ahmed Hafez

What is uveitis? Uveitis is a term for a group of conditions that cause inflammation in the eye. It is most often caused by an autoimmune response, but it can be due to an infection. Uveitis is the name given when the middle layer of the wall of your eye gets inflamed (red and sore). The middle layer is called the ‘uvea’. It is found under the white outside layer of the eye (called the ‘sclera’). You can get different types of uveitis. These are: anterior uveitis – this affects the iris in the front of the eye intermediate uveitis

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Twitching eye

By Dr. Ahmed Hafez

What is twitching eye? A ‘twitching eye’ or an ‘eye twitch’ are terms that describe muscle spasms in the eyelid. Most of the time these are mild and go away on their own A twitching eye happens when the muscles in the eyelid contract (spasm) without someone’s control. What causes twitching eye? Numerous factors can cause eye twitches, including stress, fatigue, bright lights, irritation of the eye or inner eyelids, smoking, pollution, and excess caffeine or alcohol. These sorts of twitches usually go away on their own. Eye twitches can remain for longer than a week or become more serious,

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Trachoma

By Dr. Ahmed Hafez

Key facts Trachoma is a preventable eye infection you can catch from contact with fluid from the eyes and nose of infected people. Active trachoma can cause red, sticky eyes Sometimes children can have no symptoms. Repeated infection can cause visual impairment, including blindness if left untreated. Trachoma can be treated with a single dose of antibiotic and prevented with good hygiene. What is trachoma? Trachoma is a preventable eye infection caused by the bacterium chlamydia trachomatis. If not treated, this infection can cause your eyelids to turn inwards. This causes trichiasis – when your eyelashes rub on your eyeball,

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Short-sightedness (myopia)

By Dr. Ahmed Hafez

What is short-sightedness? Short-sightedness (also known as myopia) is a common eye condition that causes distant objects to appear blurred. Someone with myopia can achieve good vision with prescription glasses, contact lenses or laser surgery. Short-sightedness usually first appears in childhood. How is short-sightedness caused? When light enters the eye, it is bent by the cornea (the clear layer on the front of the eye) and the lens. If you have normal vision, the light waves are brought into focus right on the retina, the layer at the back of the eye. If you are short-sighted, the light waves from

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Long-sightedness (hyperopia)

By Dr. Ahmed Hafez

What is long-sightedness? Long-sightedness (also known as hyperopia) is a common eye condition that can be hard to detect. It makes close objects appear blurry, or you might be able to focus clearly but get tired eyes or headaches. For people with significant long-sightedness, vision can be blurry for things in the distance as well. How is long-sightedness caused? The size and shape of the eye largely causes long-sightedness. When light enters the eye, it is bent by the cornea, the clear layer on the front of the eye, and the lens. This process is known as refraction. If you

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Stye

By Sama Mohamed

What is a stye? A stye (hordeolum) is a small, painful lump on the outside or inside of your eyelid. Styes often look like pimples. A stye may be a different colour to the rest of your skin due to swelling. If a stye eye has a white spot in the middle, this means there is pus inside. The stye may feel sore and tender. It may cause your eye to water. Chalazion cysts are another type of lump that can be found on the eyelid. These are not painful. What causes a stye? Styes are quite common. They are caused

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Retinitis pigmentosa

By Sama Mohamed

What is retinitis pigmentosa? Retinitis pigmentosa is a collection of inherited eye disorders where there is damage to the retina. If you have retinitis pigmentosa, there is support and advice available to help you live with the condition. The retina is a layer of tissue on the inside back of the eye. It contains cells that detect light and send signals to the brain. The brain understands these signals as vision — this is how you see. In people with retinitis pigmentosa, these cells gradually break down, causing a gradual loss of vision. The breakdown of these cells is unpredictable —

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Presbyopia

By Sama Mohamed

What is presbyopia? Presbyopia is a condition in which your eyes become less able to focus as you get older. Usually, you notice that reading and focusing on objects close up becomes more difficult, although you will still see distant objects clearly. Presbyopia is a natural part of ageing and is usually corrected with the use of glasses or contact lenses.   What causes presbyopia? As you get older, the lens in your eye becomes harder and less flexible. This makes it harder to focus on close objects. People often notice changes in their vision around the age of 40. You might

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Conjunctivitis – Pink eye

By Sama Mohamed

Key facts Conjunctivitis is sometimes known as ‘pink eye’ or ‘sticky eye’. Conjunctivitis is a common condition where the white part of the eye becomes pink or red. One or both eyes may be watery, sore or itchy, sometimes with sticky white or yellow discharge. Conjunctivitis can be caused by bacterial or viral infection, allergy, or irritants such as dust or chemicals. Your doctor or optometrist can tell you the likely cause of your conjunctivitis, if it’s contagious, and the best treatment for your type of conjunctivitis. Conjunctivitis (pink eye) What is conjunctivitis? Conjunctivitis, sometimes known as ‘pink eye’ or

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Optic neuritis

By Sama Mohamed

What is optic neuritis? The optic nerve is the nerve that carries information about what you see from the eye to the brain. Optic neuritis occurs when the optic nerve becomes inflamed or damaged and causes pain in the eye and a sudden partial or complete loss of vision. What are the symptoms of optic neuritis? Symptoms of optic neuritis include: pain in or around the eye, which might feel worse when you move your eye colours appearing ‘washed out’ or dull blind spots or areas of poor vision surrounded by normal vision a sudden loss of vision in one

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Macular degeneration

By Sama Mohamed

Key facts Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a chronic painless eye disease that causes central vision loss, and is more common as you get older. You may have no symptoms or you may have difficulty reading and seeing faces clearly, with dark patches in your central vision. Early detection of AMD increases the chance that your doctor can treat you, and can help prevent further loss of vision. You should have regular eye exams, especially if someone in your family has AMD. What is AMD? AMD is a chronic, painless eye disease associated with ageing that causes you to lose central vision.

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Laser eye surgery

By Sama Mohamed

What is laser eye surgery? Laser eye surgery uses a beam of light (a laser) to destroy diseased or unwanted eye tissue. It can reshape your cornea, correcting your vision. In many cases this removes the need for glasses or contact lenses. Like all surgery, it has risks and possible complications. When is laser eye surgery used? Laser eye surgery is most often used to correct vision. People with poor vision often have a misshaped cornea. This is the clear layer at the front of the eye. A misshaped cornea is not the correct shape to focus light on the

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Keratoconus

By Sama Mohamed

What is keratoconus? Keratoconus is an eye condition affecting the cornea, which is the transparent surface of the eye. Keratoconus occurs when the cornea slowly changes shape. While the cornea is normally shaped like a dome, with keratoconus it thins and becomes shaped like a cone. This affects the way the eyes focus light and can distort vision. Keratoconus usually develops in younger people between about 16 and 30 and progresses until about the age of 40. It usually affects both eyes, though one eye may be worse than the other. If you notice any eye symptoms or changes to

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Glaucoma

By Sama Mohamed

Key facts Glaucoma is a common eye problem that causes vision loss due to damage to the optic nerve. If untreated, glaucoma can cause blindness. There are 2 main types of glaucoma: open-angle and closed-angle glaucoma. Glaucoma can also be described as primary or secondary, as well as chronic or acute. Acute angle-closure glaucoma involves sudden, severe eye pain with nausea and vomiting, headache and blurred vision. This is an emergency and you should seek prompt treatment so you don’t lose vision. Regular eye tests by an optometrist can mean early treatment and reduce you chance of long term damage

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Eye discharge

By Sama Mohamed

Key facts It’s normal to find some crusty eye discharge along your lashes and in the corner of your eye when you wake up from sleep. This is not usually a cause for concern. Eye discharge may be watery or sticky — these different types of discharge indicate different causes for eye discharge. You do not need antibiotics for all types of eye discharge. See your doctor or pharmacist if you have yellow-green sticky discharge, pain or swelling in or around your eye, blurred vision or light sensitivity. What is eye discharge? Eye discharge is secretion of mucus or other

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Diabetic retinopathy

By Sama Mohamed

Key facts In people with diabetes the retina (the back of your eye) can become damaged. Diabetic retinopathy causes serious vision problems. If you have diabetes, you can reduce your chances of developing diabetic retinopathy by keeping your blood sugar levels, blood pressure and cholesterol under control. If you have diabetes you should have regular eye checks, even if your vision seems normal. If you notice any changes to your vision, don’t wait for your routine eye check. What is diabetic retinopathy? The retina is a layer of tissue inside the back of your eye. If you have diabetes, the tiny

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Colour blindness

By Sama Mohamed

Key facts Colour blindness is when you can’t see certain colours in the usual way. People who are colour blind may confuse some colours, may not see some colours as brightly as people with normal vision or they may not see colours at all. Colour blindness is usually inherited and is there from birth, but it can also arise later in life from damage to the brain or eyes. Your doctor or optometrist can use different types of colour vision tests, such as the Ishihara test, to help diagnose colour blindness. What is colour blindness? Colour blindness is a condition

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Cataracts

By Sama Mohamed

Cataracts What are cataracts? A cataract is a clouding of the lens of the eye. The lens is normally clear. Cataracts can occur in one or both eyes. Cataracts develop mostly in older people, but younger people can also get cataracts and, in rare cases, babies are born with a cataract (congenital cataract). Cataracts are the leading cause of blindness in adults worldwide. In most cases cataracts can be successfully treated and vision restored. What are the symptoms of cataracts? Cataracts usually develop slowly, and you may not have any symptoms at first. They can affect one eye only or both

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Astigmatism

By Sama Mohamed

What is astigmatism? Astigmatism is a problem with vision that is caused by the cornea or the lens of the eye not being perfectly curved. The result is blurred vision — mildly blurred for some people, severely blurred for others. Eye check-ups can diagnose astigmatism, which can be treated with glasses, contact lenses or laser eye surgery. What are the types of astigmatism? There are 2 types of astigmatism: regular — where the cornea is curved more in 1 direction (say vertically) than the other (say horizontally) irregular — where the curvature of the cornea is uneven across the surface

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