Four Rare Eye Diseases You Haven’t Heard Of

Our eyes are an important part of our body since it serves as the windows for us to see the best that the nature can provide us. Taking advantage of it can lead to diseases which ranges from small-scale illnesses to serious and fatal ones.

There are also instances that eye diseases cannot only be obtained through carelessness but also, we can acquire eye diseases through genetics. That means that even if you are taking good care of yourself, you might still acquire eye diseases (especially if your family had histories of eye diseases).

With that, here are the four rare diseases that have common symptoms which may lead you to thinking that your disease is only common and that it can be treated easily. In dealing with these diseases, here are some of the symptoms causes and possible treatment prepared for you by One Care Companion, the best home care services in Naples South Florida.

Acute Zonal Occult Outer Retinopathy (AZOOR).

This is a disease in the retina which is characterized by surprising bright lights that are flashing causing the visual field to modify or a normal retina to change. A visual field defect includes the enlargement of the blind spot and paracentral inferior, superior and temporal defects.

One eye is affected at first but as time goes on, the other eye may be affected as well. The acute zonal occult outer retinopathy (AZOOR) affects women three times more compared to men, and most people who were affected by this disease are middle aged Caucassian.

A patient may experience the following symptoms:

• Sudden appearance of scotoma (a part of visual field which is blurry or it seems like it is missing, same as blind spot).
• Photopsias – this is the flashing or the appearance of shining lights in the vision.

Scientists are trying to find a treatment for this condition which includes steroids and some immune suppression therapies but as of this time, none of those have showed plausible efficacy.

Best’s disease.

This is one of the eye diseases which can be passed genetically. This is a condition can affect the macula (an area in the center of the retina), causing a blurry or distorted vision, and worse it can cause loss of the central vision.

The scientific name of the Best’s disease is Vitelliform Macular Dystrophy. Most people above 40 years old are of bigger risks

The following are the symptoms that a patient may suffer if he/she has Best’s disease:

• The straight lines are starting to look wavy or distorted.
• Observes difficulty in reading small prints even though the patient is reading with reading eyeglasses on.
• The vision is not clear, compared before.
• As of this time, there is no found treatment for the Best’s Disease. However, the patient can use specially made eyeglasses to correct the visual impairment.

Stages of Best disease:

Stage One:

• The eye’s macula looks healthy.
• No changes can be seen visible on the naked eyes.
• There is small changes below the macular’s layer but there is no effect on the vision.

Stage Two

• It is known as the vitelliform stage.
• There is already a yellowish fluid on the eye’s macula area and it looks like an egg yolk.
• This stage occurs between three to fifteen years old.

Stage Three

• Also known as pseudohpopynon stage.
• The yellowish fluid can breakthrough beneath the retina’s layer.
• There is a minimal change in the vision.
• This stage can be observed in the teenage years.

Stage Four

• Also known as the Vitelliruptive stage.
• Lesions are starting to breakthrough and causes damage to the cells.
• The straight lines would appear wavy and you have a difficulty with reading small letters and prints.

Stage Five

• This is also called as Atrophic stage.
• The retina cells are damaged and scarred.
• The eyesight is seriously deteriorating.
• You can find difficulty in reading, may it be small or big prints.

Coloboma

This is a gap in some part of the patient’s eye such as iris, lens and even on the retina. It is caused by a defect of the eyeball’s development. The range of coloboma’s effect depends on the size and the place where the cleft is located.

Symptoms of coloboma:

• There is a defect in the patient’s iris.
• The patient has poor vision.

Types of coloboma:

• Eyelid coloboma – The coloboma is in the eyelid and a part of the upper or lower eyelid is missing.
• Lens coloboma – A piece of eye lens is absent.
• Macular coloboma – This happens when the macula does not normally develop.
• Optic nerve coloboma – It is when the optic nerve was excavated deeply.

Glaucoma

It happens when the pressure of the eye’s fluid is too high which would result to the loss of peripheral vision. If this condition will not be diagnosed and treated, it will worsen and may cause blindness.

Symptoms of Glaucoma:

• Blurred vision
• There is a rainbow circles around the bright lights.
• Head and eye pains.
• Vomiting and nausea
• Sudden sight loss

These diseases are terrifying and we might not know what to do with this. However, you don’t need to worry anymore because One Care Companion, which offers home care services in Naples South Florida, have staff that are more than willing and able to help you.

You may visit www.onecarecompanion.com to look for more information on how to avail the best home care services in Naples South Florida.