Underlining that the loss of vision that does not return within 24 hours is called 'permanent vision loss', Eye Health and Diseases Specialist Dr. Mustafa Nil said, “Here, situations where vision decreases gradually attract more attention. For example, cataracts, refractive errors, retinal diseases, retinopathy due to diabetes, age-related yellow spot disease, glaucoma can be given as examples. Blockages in the eye vessels, intraocular hemorrhages due to trauma or disease, painful glaucoma crisis, corneal edema in the anterior layer of the eye can also cause sudden vision loss.”
Dr. Mustafa Nil, Eye Health and Diseases Specialist at Medical Park Ataşehir Hospital, gave information about the diseases that cause vision loss on the occasion of October 10, World Sight Day.
Stating that vision is the ability to distinguish the shapes, locations, colors and brightness of objects by a person through visual physiology, Specialist. Dr. Nil said, “The physiology of vision includes the eyeball, the pathways between the eye and the brain, and the visual centers and auxiliary centers in the brain. Data from the eyeball forms an image in the primary visual cortex at the back of the brain and the image is interpreted in this region. Vision loss can be caused by disease or trauma to any of these areas or pathways. We cannot directly call every vision loss as vision loss,” he said.
“Causes of vision loss”
Referring to the conditions that lead to vision loss, Specialist. Dr. Nil said, “Legal vision loss or blindness is when a person's vision remains below 10 percent despite correction with contact lenses or glasses, or when the field of vision remains below 20 degrees when viewed with a visual field device. Causes of vision loss can lead to temporary vision loss or permanent vision loss. Conditions such as a blockage in the brain vessels, temporary contractions in the intraocular vessels, migraine attacks, mild intraocular hemorrhages can lead to temporary vision loss.”
“Beware of sudden vision loss”
Stating that if vision loss does not return within 24 hours, this is called “permanent vision loss”, Uzm. Dr. Nil said, “Here, situations where vision gradually decreases are more noticeable. For example, cataracts, refractive errors, retinal diseases, retinopathy due to diabetes, age-related yellow spot disease, glaucoma can be given as examples. Blockages in the eye vessels, intraocular hemorrhages due to trauma or disease, painful glaucoma crisis, a corneal edema in the anterior layer of the eye, which also develops painfully, can cause sudden vision loss.”
“Individuals at risk”
Speaking about individuals who are at risk of vision loss, Specialist. Dr. Nil shared the following information: “People with hypertension, diabetes, coagulation problems related to blood elements, some neurological diseases such as Multiple Sclerosis and some rheumatic diseases such as Behçet's disease are at risk of decreased vision and vision loss in advanced periods. In addition, vision loss may also occur in cases such as heavy alcohol use and long-term use of certain medications.”
“It may be glaucoma”
Speaking about glaucoma disease, Uzm. Dr. Nil said, “Glaucoma is a disease in which the visual nerve behind the eye is gradually damaged as a result of increased intraocular pressure called eye pressure. Glaucoma is an insidious disease that progresses slowly and is detected during routine eye examinations without most symptoms. If detected during the early stage, it responds to medical treatment with eye drops, but may require laser intervention or glaucoma surgery in the late stages.”
“A person without eye problems should be examined once every 2 years”
Expressing how often eye examinations should be performed, Specialist. Dr. Nil concluded his words by saying, “Someone who does not have eye problems can have a regular eye examination every 2 years, but those with refractive error or disease may need to have an eye examination every 6 months, even every 3 months depending on the stage of the disease.”
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