Macular Disease Specialist

What is macular disease?

Macular disease affects the macula, the part of your retina that manages central vision. Some of the many different macular diseases include:

• Macular degeneration
• Macular hole
• Macular pucker
• Retinal vein occlusion
• Diabetic macular edema

Retina Specialists provides the latest and most advanced treatments for all types of macular disease.

What are the symptoms of macular disease?

The symptoms of macular disease vary by condition. The early form of some macular diseases might be symptom-free, or nearly so. That’s why regular comprehensive dilated eye exams are such a crucial part of your eye health and wellness. 

Your Retina Specialists ophthalmologist can often identify and diagnose macular disease before you even experience symptoms, and this means you can start preventive treatments right away.

If your macular disease does cause symptoms, you’re likely to have central vision problems. Good macula health is necessary for clear, sharp vision while you’re reading, driving, watching television, and doing other normal daily activities. 

When macular disease is advanced, you might suffer from one or more of the following. 

• Blurry vision
• Blind spots in central vision
• Vision distortions, like straight lines looking wavy
• Difficulty seeing in dim light

If you suffer these types of symptoms, especially if they start suddenly, it’s important to schedule an eye exam with a Retina Specialists ophthalmologist as soon as you can. 

By the time that you have symptoms, you might already have serious macula damage. Without treatment, the problem could worsen, even causing blindness in some cases. 

How are macular diseases treated?

Macular disease treatment is customized based on your disease, your symptoms, your eye health, and other factors that affect you. In some cases, macular disease that’s not causing notable symptoms might not require treatment. 

For example, a macular pucker or even macular hole can sometimes heal on its own, so your ophthalmologist might opt for close monitoring to start with.

Some factors in macular disease are controllable, such as smoking and high blood pressure. Other diseases like diabetes may contribute, so the Retina Specialists urge you to work with your primary care doctor or medical specialist to manage the controllable contributing factors.

If you have serious macula damage, you might need a procedure like in-office laser treatment or a surgery called vitrectomy to repair damage to the macula and encourage healing. 

The Retina Specialists ophthalmologists personalize macular disease treatment just for you. Use online scheduling or call the office nearest you today for help.