Vitrectomy: The Outpatient Surgery That Can Save Your Vision
If you’re losing your vision due to retinal problems or issues with your vitreous humor, vitrectomy is a straightforward surgical procedure that can save your sight. Here’s how it works.
How Aging Impacts Retinal Health
Aging affects every part of your body, and that includes your eyes. While some conditions, including dry eyes and cataracts, are easily treatable, those that affect the retina, the light-sensing tissue in the back of your eye, can lead to blindness if not treated promptly.
At Retina Specialists, our team of board-certified ophthalmologists are experts in retinal care, including macular disease. The macula is the 2% of the retina that registers your clear, central vision. Here, the team describes how getting older impacts your retinal health and what they can do to prevent or treat problems.
What are common retinal problems related to age?
Problems like dry eyes and cataracts are common age-related eye problems, but they don’t affect the retina. However, there are two conditions that do: age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and diabetic retinopathy.
Macular degeneration
AMD is an eye disease that can blur the central part of your vision and is a leading cause of vision loss for older adults. People aged 55 and older are more likely to have AMD.
When the macula is damaged, it doesn’t cause complete blindness. However, losing the central part of your vision can make it harder to see faces, read, drive, or do any close-up work like sewing or cooking.
There are two types of AMD: dry and wet.
Most people with AMD have the dry form (also called atrophic AMD). As you age, the macula gets thinner and develops patches of damaged cells that comprise the tissue. The condition usually progresses slowly over several years, from early to intermediate to late stages.
Wet AMD (also called advanced neovascular AMD), is a less common type of AMD. Any stage of dry AMD can become wet AMD — but wet AMD is always late stage.
Wet AMD occurs when abnormal blood vessels grow on the retinal tissue, damaging the macula.
Symptoms
AMD symptoms depend on the stage, but it’s a progressive disease, so symptoms get worse over time.
Early dry AMD doesn’t cause any symptoms. It can only be detected by a comprehensive eye exam.
Intermediate dry AMD may or may not produce symptoms. If it does, people generally have mild blurriness in their central vision or difficulty seeing in low lighting.
In late AMD (wet or dry), patients notice that straight lines tend to look wavy or crooked, and they may see a blurry area near the center of their vision. Over time, the blurry area can grow larger, and/or they may see blank spots. Colors may also seem less vibrant.
Straight lines appearing wavy is a warning sign for late AMD. If you have this symptom, make an appointment with Retina Specialists right away.
Treatment
Treatment for dry AMD depends on the stage. There's no treatment for early AMD, so your ophthalmologist monitors your eyes with regular exams. Healthy lifestyle habits can help.
If you have intermediate AMD in one or both eyes, special dietary supplements (AREDS 2) may be able to stop it from progressing to late AMD. If you have late AMD in only one eye, AREDS 2 may help the other eye stabilize.
In addition, the FDA recently approved SYFOVRE®, a prescription eye injection used to slow the progression of late dry AMD. Unfortunately, it can’t stop the progression altogether or reverse any damage that’s already been done.
If you have wet AMD, anti-VEGF injectable medications can stop the proliferation of errant blood vessels. Photodynamic therapy offers a combination of injections and laser treatment.
Diabetic retinopathy
Diabetes’ high sugar levels weaken the blood vessels in your retina. Retinopathy is the most common cause of vision loss for adults younger than 50.
There are two types. The early stage is called nonproliferative diabetes-related retinopathy (NPDR), where blood vessels leak in the retina. Eventually, these blood vessels seal off, leading to poor blood flow.
The later stage is proliferative diabetes-related retinopathy (PDR); abnormal blood vessels grow in response to the loss of blood flow. These vessels can leak blood into the vitreous gel filling your eye and detach the retina, resulting in severe vision loss in late stages.
Treatment options include anti-VEGF injections (as with wet AMD) or corticosteroids to slow progression; laser surgery to shrink blood vessels or stop leakage; or a vitrectomy, a surgical procedure to repair the blood vessels and remove scar tissue.
The bottom line
Aging is inevitable, but vision loss is not. The best way to protect your eyes and catch problems early is to schedule yearly comprehensive eye exams with your ophthalmologist. Early detection leads to early intervention, and that may prevent vision loss.
To learn more, or to schedule an appointment with Retina Specialists, give us a call at any of our locations (Dallas, DeSoto, Plano, Mesquite, and Waxahachie, Texas).
You Might Also Enjoy...
When to Seek Treatment for Eye Trauma
If you’ve received a blow to the eye or gotten something in it, it may be minor, or it may threaten your vision. Here’s how you know when to seek treatment for eye trauma.
What Happens During a Diabetic Eye Exam?
If you’re a diabetic, it’s essential to make yearly eye exams to ensure proper eye health. Here, we discuss what happens when you come in for a diabetic eye exam.
Diagnosing and Treating an Eye Tumor
If you notice a brown mole either next to or within your eye, it’s possible you have an eye tumor, and you need to get it checked out to determine if it’s cancerous or benign. Here’s how we diagnose and treat an eye tumor.
Understanding the Differences Between Macular Holes and Macular Puckers
Macular puckers and macular holes are related conditions that affect the light-sensing tissue at the back of your eye and your clear, central vision. Learn more about the conditions and how they’re treated here.
Your Step-By-Step Guide to Your Upcoming Scleral Buckling Surgery
If you’ve detached your retina, the light-sensing tissue in the back of your eye, the doctor may perform scleral buckling surgery. Here’s what you need to know about your condition, and a step-by-step guide through the procedure.