Diabetic Retinopathy

What is diabetic retinopathy?

Diabetic retinopathy is a diabetes complication that affects the retina, the light-sensitive tissue that lines the back of your eye. The condition can affect anyone with Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes. The longer you have diabetes and the less controlled your blood sugar is, the more likely you are to develop this eye complication.

Signals sent from the retina to the brain allow you to see. Diabetes affects the retina when high blood sugar levels cause blockage to the blood vessels that nourish the retina, cutting off its blood supply. This loss of blood flow to the retina causes abnormal new vessels to grow. These new vessels can leak and create scar tissue that can cause loss of vision.

Risk factors for diabetic retinopathy

Anyone who has diabetes can develop diabetic retinopathy. The risk factors that increase your risk of developing diabetic retinopathy include:

  • Longer duration of diabetes
  • Poor control of blood sugar level
  • High blood pressure
  • High cholesterol
  • Smoking

Symptoms of diabetic retinopathy

It’s uncommon to have symptoms during the early stages of the condition. The symptoms of diabetic retinopathy often don’t appear until major damage occurs inside the eye. You can reduce your risk of damage to the retina by managing your blood sugar levels and getting regular eye exams to monitor your eye health.

When symptoms do appear, they can include:

  • Blurred vision
  • Fluctuating vision
  • Dark spots or strings in your vision (floaters)
  • Dark or empty areas in your vision
  • Loss of vision

Treatment for diabetic retinopathy

Treatment for early diabetic retinopathy is focused on monitoring your eye health and managing your diabetes. Treatment for advanced diabetic retinopathy depends on the type of damage and severity of retinopathy.

Treatment options include injections, surgery and laser treatment:

  • Anti-VEGF (vascular endothelial growth factor) drugs injected into the eye inhibits the growth of new, leaky blood vessels.
  • A surgical procedure called a vitrectomy may be needed if a lot of blood has leaked into the eye and the vision does not clear or if the retina has detached. The vitreous, a jelly-like substance that fills the back of the eye, is removed and replaced with a salt solution to clear away the blood that’s affecting your vision. Scar tissue may also be removed during a vitrectomy.
  • Laser treatment, also known as photocoagulation, can be used to shrink or seal the abnormal blood vessels.

How is diabetic retinopathy prevented?

If you have diabetes, you can reduce your risk of developing diabetic retinopathy by:

  • Getting regular eye exams
  • Keeping your blood sugar levels within target
  • Maintaining blood pressure and cholesterol levels in a healthy range
  • Not smoking
  • Eating nutritious food and exercising regularly

Book a Consultation

If you’d like to find out more about diabetic retinopathy, please call us on (03) 9070 0955, or contact us using the online form below and we will be in touch.

Macular Degeneration

What is macular degeneration?

Age related macular degeneration, also known as macular degeneration, is a chronic disease affecting the macula. The macula is a small area in the centre of the retina at the back of the eye responsible for central vision.

Macular degeneration causes central vision loss. Macular degeneration doesn’t cause total blindness because it doesn’t affect your peripheral vision.

There are two types of macular degeneration:

  • Dry macular degeneration affects about 85-90% of people with the condition. It develops slowly and causes gradual vision loss. It is caused by the gradual loss of cells in the macula.
  • Dry macular degeneration affects about 85-90% of people with the condition. It develops slowly and causes gradual vision loss. It is caused by the gradual loss of cells in the macula.

Risk factors for macular degeneration

It isn’t known why some people develop macular degeneration while others don’t. However, risk factors that can increase your risk of developing the disease include:

  • Being over 55 years old
  • Having a family history of macular degeneration
  • Smoking
  • Having cardiovascular disease
  • Having high cholesterol

Symptoms of macular degeneration

Macular degeneration is a progressive disease. This means it will usually get worse over time. Symptoms can include one or all of the following:

  • Distortion, where straight lines appear bent or wavy
  • Reduction in central vision
  • A blurry or dark spot in your central vision
  • The need for brighter lighting or difficulty adapting to low lights
  • The need for brighter lighting or difficulty adapting to low lights
  • Difficulty reading or doing activities that require fine central vision

Treatment for macular degeneration

There is currently no treatment available for dry macular degeneration.

However, there are treatment options available for wet macular degeneration to help stabilise vision. These include anti-VEGF (vascular endothelial growth factor) drugs to inhibit the formation of new blood vessels in the macula. This is delivered in the form of an injection into the eye. Many patients require ongoing treatment to prevent vision loss.

Book a Consultation

If you’d like to find out more about macular degeneration, please call us on (03) 9070 0955, or contact us using the online form below and we will be in touch.

Keratoconus

What is keratoconus?

Keratoconus is a condition where the cornea – the clear, dome shaped front surface of your eye – gradually thins and bulges outward into a cone. A healthy cornea is spherical in shape, allowing light entering the eye to come into focus, forming a clear image. A cone shaped cornea however, causes blurred vision and may also cause sensitivity to light and glare. Keratoconus usually affects both eyes, although it often affects one eye more than the other.

Keratoconus usually begins to affect people in their teenage years or early twenties. The condition will often progress at varying rates before stabilising in your 30s or 40s.

What causes keratoconus

The exact cause of Keratoconus remains unknown, although it is believed that the predisposition to develop the disease is present at birth. Factors that may increase the risk of developing Keratoconus include:

  • Vigorous eye rubbing
  • Having a family history of Keratoconus – Around 1 in 10 people with Keratoconus also have a parent with the condition
  • Having a family history of Keratoconus – Around 1 in 10 people with Keratoconus also have a parent with the condition

Symptoms

Symptoms of Keratoconus may include a combination of the following and may change as the disease progresses:

  • Blurred or Distorted vision
  • Double vision or Ghosting of images
  • Increased sensitivity to bright lights
  • Glare and Halos around lights
  • Difficulty seeing at night
  • Frequent changes in glasses prescription
  • Sudden blurring or Clouding of vision

Treatment

In the early stages of Keratoconus, vision problems can often be corrected with glasses or soft contact lenses. As the condition progresses and the cornea becomes more irregular, you may have to be fitted with hard contact lenses such as rigid gas permeable contact lenses or scleral lenses. If the Keratoconus progresses to an advanced stage, a corneal transplant may be needed to restore sight.

Corneal collagen cross-linking is the only treatment that helps to slow or stop Keratoconus from progressing. Stabilising the Keratoconus aims to stop worsening of the disease and preserve your vision.

Corneal cross-linking

During corneal cross-linking, the cornea is saturated with riboflavin (Vitamin B2) drops and then treated with ultraviolet A light. This causes collagen cross-linking of the cornea, which stiffens the cornea to prevent further shape changes.

Corneal collagen cross-linking helps to reduce the risk of progressive vision loss by stabilising the cornea. The treatment in itself does not reverse Keratoconus or improve vision. In some patients, corneal cross-linking may be combined with a reshaping procedure to help regularise and improve the overall shape of the cornea. Speak to your corneal specialist to find out if you are eligible for this procedure.

Corneal transplant

You may need a corneal transplant if you have corneal scarring, extreme thinning of your cornea, poor vision with contact lenses or an inability to wear contact lenses. Cornea transplant surgery for Keratoconus is generally very successful, but often glasses and/or hard contact lenses are still required after surgery.

Book a Consultation

If you’d like to find out more about keratoconus, please call us on (03) 9070 0955, or contact us using the online form below and we will be in touch.

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什么是白内障?

白内障 是眼内本应透明的晶状体有混浊的現象。晶状体的混浊使通常聚焦在视网膜上的光线变得模糊和散射,导致视力下降。一般来说,白內障最常見的原因为自然老化, 随着年龄的增长,白内障的发病率逐渐提高。 但也有可能在低年龄段发生, 如果患者有家庭性遗传,或者以前眼睛受过伤或 接受过眼手术。

如何知道自己是否需要做白内障手术?

通常, 患者根据自身视力情况和 白内障对日常生活的影响程度来决定是否进行白内障手术。 患者的视力可能开始影响到正常的日常活动,例如开车,看电视和使用电脑。 患者眼镜的度数会在短期内不断改变, 而且视力用眼镜无法纠正到 1.0 (百分百)。

以前的概念是 等到视力下降到 0.1 (10%) 才做手术因为以前的科技技术落后,现在因为是使用微创的超声乳化技术,视力只要下降到0.8(80%)就可以做手术。对于有青光眼,近视,远视的患者可以更早进行白内障手术。你的眼科专科医生会跟你讨论你的症状和手术的必要性。

白内障手术的程序是如何?

白内障手术通常是在医院 进行的当天 手术。手术是在局部麻醉下进行的。因为手术后患者将不能开车,所以在手术当天切记安排好接送的交通工具。

手术包括通过微创小切口 超声乳化 白内障(浑浊晶状体),然后用透明丙烯酸晶体植入物替代。晶状体植入物是永久性的,不需要更换。手术需要10-20分钟。通常微创切口很小,甚至不需要缝合。

在局部麻醉下进行白内障手术并不痛苦,但手术过程中患者可能会感到眼睛有压力。为了确保手术区域的干净,患者的脸和另一只眼睛都将会盖上无菌罩,但鼻子和嘴巴可以正常呼吸新鲜空气。医生会使用特殊仪器将需要手术的眼睛保持张开,因此患者不必担心自己长时间睁大眼睛。务必谨记, 手术过程中不要突然移动。

通常, 因为局部麻醉,部分病人在手术中只看到蓝色或紫色的轮光。 医生会讨论手术中与患者沟通方式 ,患者可以选择握住护士的手,如果有什么特殊情况需要与医生进行沟通,可以捏一下护士的手。 当然,如果患者觉得需要咳嗽或打喷嚏,请提前告诉医生或护士, 但注意千万不要自己移动头,但注意千万不要自己移动头,直到得到医生的许可。

在白内障手术过后, 什么时候驾车是安全的?

这取决于许多因素,包括患者另一只眼睛的视力。最好在手术前询问医生,因为他/她可以根据你的个人情况回答问题。通常医生会建议不开车5 天。

术后有必要戴眼镜吗?

在大多数情况下,人工晶状体植入是为了提供良好的远视力,但是对于观看近处 普遍需要老花眼镜 。 在双眼白内障手术后的4 – 6周内,患者需要重新检查视力和跟换新眼镜。

如果患者非常不希望在白内障手术后戴眼镜,眼科医生可以给予意见和提供不同的选择给患者其中包括 多焦或扩展距离的人工晶体 或 双眼单视法。

  • 不要在眼睛上摩擦或按压
  • 要清洁眼睑,用干净的,湿润的洗面奶轻轻清洁,同时闭上眼睛
  • 不要让肥皂或水进入眼睛
  • 一周内不要用洗发水洗头
  • 在室外戴上太阳眼镜,最好有侧护罩
  • 避免灰尘的地区
  • 用胶带固定一个星期睡觉,尽量不要在手术一侧睡觉。
  • 5天内不要开车
  • 术后2周内不要用吸尘器清理房间
  • 术后4周内禁止游泳或水疗
  • 4周内避免剧烈运动和举重
  • 请携带眼药水参加手术后的所有预约