We all take our sense of sight for granted. It’s no secret that only when severe problems hinder our vision do we find ourselves regretting not being careful. Eye defects can occur at an early age as well as in later years of life. Both scenarios demand an early diagnosis and proper treatments in order to prevent the situation from worsening over time.
Although there are many disorders and complications relating to the eye, some of them are more common. As per renowned and experienced Dubai eye specialists, these are some of the most common eye problems everyone should be aware of. Let’s have a look at them:
Refractive Errors:
You might have seen people facing difficulty reading a newspaper, phonebook records or even focusing on people up close. This is due to refractive error, classified as one of the most common problems to occur in the eyes. Refractive errors are vision problems that occur when light doesn’t focus accurately on the retina due to its shape. The most common refractive errors that can occur in the eye (also categorized as spherical or cylindrical errors) are:
Myopia:
Refractive myopia occurs when the curvature of the eyeball is too much to sustain the powerful optics. This causes blurry vision in the form of nearsightedness. Furthermore, the length of the eyeball can also become a problem if it’s too long. This is known as axial myopia. Concave lenses are used to treat patients with myopia. A permanent solution can be a surgery to correct the curvature and the length of the eyeball.
Hyperopia:
Opposite to myopia, hyperopia occurs if the optics that are falling on the eye are too weak. This, again, causes vision to be blurred in the form of farsightedness. Refractive hyperopia, thus becomes the condition when the cornea or crystalline doesn’t have enough curvature. Similarly, if the eyeball length is too short for the optics, the condition is known as axial hyperopia. Doctors use convex lenses to treat patients with hyperopia. Ocular surgeries are used to treat the conditions permanently.
Astigmatism:
Specifically, cylindrical errors are the primary cause of Astigmatism. If along one meridian, the optical power of the eye is either too strong or too weak, there occurs an axis of the cylinder. This is the angle between the meridian and the horizontal. Patients of astigmatic refractive errors have difficulty seeing lines that aren’t right-angle to them. Doctors treat this condition by refracting the light present in one of the meridians more than the other. This is done using cylindrical lenses.
Presbyopia:
Presbyopia occurs with the declining flexibility of the lens and mostly occurs in people of old age. Patients of presbyopia can be helped with reading glasses, bifocal or progressive lenses.
Cataract:
A cataract is the cloudy eye lens that occurs in people and ultimately leads to blindness. This is something that can occur at all ages and can even be present from birth. Although there are many treatments available for the problem, not everyone has access to it. Cataracts occur when protein starts building up in the lens of our eyes. This protein becomes a cloudy layer that ends up blurring vision as light doesn’t pass completely through it. There are different types of cataracts:
Age-Related:
With age, the eyes develop the cloudy layer of protein as our bodies get weaker.
Secondary:
Cataracts of this type are likely to occur due to other diseases like diabetes. Furthermore, excessive exposure to ultraviolet rays, toxic substances like harmful gases and chemicals, radiation or diuretics can also cause cataracts.
Congenital:
When new-born babies are found to have cataracts, they’re called congenital cataracts. This is likely to occur if there are complications during the pregnancy, an injury or developmental issues in the womb. If babies aren’t born with cataracts, they can also develop cataracts during their development in childhood. It’s crucial you consult the best pediatric clinic Dubai has to offer in order to diagnose and treat it. Consult specialists and eye consultants to have the best idea about how to proceed.
