Many people experience an eye disorder at one point or the other. Some of the issues are mild and can quickly recover, while others are severe and require proper treatment for their cure.
There are hundreds of different eye disorders and vision problems. Some have no cure, while many others are treatable. Visit an eye care specialist if you have any eye problems or believe your eyesight has deteriorated over time.
You can also assist your eye health and cure your eye problems by following a healthy lifestyle. A healthy, active lifestyle consisting of regular exercise, a healthy nutritional diet, a balanced weight and stressful mental health can help improve and maintain good eye health.
What are the common causes of eye problems?
1. Red Eyes
It happens when the whites of the eyes become red or bloodshot. Red eyes can affect either one or both of the eyes. The eyes are covered with blood vessels that get expanded when irritated or infected.
Several conditions can lead to red eyes, including dust, smoke, air pollution, dry air, chemical exposure, airborne allergens, etc.
Red eyes can also be a symptom of eye problems like conjunctivitis or sun damage from not wearing shades over the year.
Symptoms Of Red Eyes:
- Irritation
- Itching
- Pain
- Burning
- Dryness
- Watery eyes
- Discharge
- Blurry vision
- Sensitivity to light
2. Eye Strain
It happens due to overuse of the eyes. If you spend a lot of time reading books, driving vehicles, and working on a computer, you might know it very well.
The eyes also get tired and need rest, just like any other body part. If you feel strain in the eyes, allow them to relax for some time. Consult an eye care specialist if the condition does not recover within a couple of days.
Symptoms Of Eye Strain:
- Headache
- Dry or watery eyes
- Blurred or double vision
- Lack of concentration
- Increased sensitivity to light
- Sore neck, back, or shoulders
- Inability to keep your eyes open
3.Eye (Amblyopia)
Lazy Eye or amblyopia is an eye disorder in which one of a child’s eyes does not generally grow throughout early infancy. As a result, the person’s vision is impaired, necessitating immediate help. In addition, the eye infected with the lazy eye is usually weaker in vision, and the eye tends to move lazily around while the other vision stays put.
Eye disorders like the lazy eye are a disease that can lead to lifelong eyesight problems if eye disorders are not diagnosed and treated immediately.
Symptoms Of Lazy Eye:
- Double vision
- Blurred vision
- Poor depth perception
- No synchronization between the eyes
- Head tilting
- Turning of an eye either inward or outward
4. Night Blindness (Nyctalopia)
A person faces challenges while seeing during nighttime, especially while driving. In addition, some of the medications for glaucoma and cataract can cause night blindness.
It can be well understood as a symptom of an underlying retina issue and not a disease. If you have myopia, you are at an increased risk of having problems with night vision.
The causes of night blindness include vitamin A deficiency, cataracts, glaucoma, nearsightedness, retinitis pigmentosa, etc.
Symptoms Of Night Blindness:
- Headache
- Eye pain
- Nausea
- Vomiting
- Blurry vision
- Difficulties seeing from a distance
- Increased sensitivity to light
5. Color Blindness
In this, a person cannot see the colors in the usual way. Therefore, they couldn’t differentiate between specific colors. Most of the time, it happens between reds and greens but can also sometimes occur with blues.
There are two types of cells present in the retina – rods and cones. Rods identify the only dark and light colours and are extremely sensitive to reduced light levels.
Cone cells, which are found around the vision centre, are responsible for color sensing. The brain detects colour with the aid of these cone cells.
Color blindness happens when one of the cone cells is not working or is not present in a person. The absence of all three cone cells leads to severe night blindness.
Symptoms Of Color Blindness:
- Difficulty in distinguishing between various colors
- Incapability to see different tones and shades of the same color
6. Dry Eyes
It refers to a condition in which the eyes are incapable of producing enough tears or have a poor quality of tears.
People with dry eyes often feel very uncomfortable, causing stinging or inflammation of the eyes.
Symptoms Of Dry Eyes:
- Eye redness
- Increased sensitivity to light
- Eye fatigue
- Blurred vision
- Watery eyes
- Stinging or burning sensation in the eyes
- Difficulty driving during nighttime
- Hardships while using contact lenses
7. Floaters
Eye floaters refer to a condition when a person experiences spots in his vision. Floaters are specks or specks that float across your field of vision. Most people notice them in a well-lit room or outdoor on a bright sunny day.
Floaters are usually normal, but they sometimes signify a more serious eye problem like retinal detachment.
Eye disorders like floaters can arise due to growing age, torn retina, eye medications, eye surgeries, inflammation in the back area of the eye, and so on.
Symptoms Of Eye Floaters:
As the name suggests, they move around in the eyes and trot off when you concentrate on them.
They are of various shapes and sizes:
- Rings
- Black/ Grey dots
- Cobwebs
- Squiggly lines
- Threadlike strands
8. Cataract
This condition occurs when a dense, cloudy region forms in the eyes’ lens. As a result, things look hazy, blurry, and less colourful with a cataract. A cataract starts when the protein present in the eyes forms clusters that impede the lens from sending clear pictures to the retina.
It is formed slowly. They don’t cause symptoms like pain, redness in the eyes or teary eyes.
Symptoms Of Cataract:
- Increased sensitivity to light and glare
- Problems with night vision
- Blurred or clouded vision
- Double vision in one eye
- Fading of colours
- The requirement of brighter light to carry out activities like reading
- Seeing halos everywhere
9. Glaucoma
Your eye is a very sensitive organ; some pressure inside it is safe, but if the levels go too high, it can damage your optic nerve for good vision, the health of the optic nerve matters. Glaucoma refers to a group of eye disorders that impairs the optic nerve.
It is one of the leading reasons for blindness for people over 60 years.
Symptoms Of Glaucoma:
- Severe eye pain
- Blurred vision
- Eye redness
- Nausea
- Vomiting
- Sudden onset of vision impairment
10. Conjunctivitis (Pink Eye)
It is a type of eye disorder in which the tissue that lines the back of your eyelids and covers the sclera of the eyes becomes inflamed. People of ages can get it. In addition, viruses, bacteria, or allergies can cause conjunctivitis.
Symptoms Of Conjunctivitis:
- Burning or itchy eyes
- The whites of eyes turn red.
- Blurred vision
- More tears than usual
- White or green discharge from eyes
- Swollen conjunctiva
- An urge to rub eyes
- Crusting of eyelashes or eyelids after waking up
- Feeling uncomfortable with contact lenses.
What are some rare eye diseases?
Some of the rare eye disorders are:
- Behcet’s disease of the eye
- Bietti’s crystalline dystrophy
- Coloboma
- Idiopathic intracranial hypertension
- Microphthalmia
- Retinitis pigmentosa
- Microphthalmia
- Retinitis pigmentosa
- Retinoblastoma
- Stargardt disease
- Usher syndrome
Can eye disorders be cured?
Many eye problems such as stagnant disease, retinitis pigmentosa, and age-related muscular pigmentation are treatable but not completely curable. However, the treatment can improve patients’ quality of life and slow the progression of damage. Acetazolamide (Iopar-SR, Diamox) or Loteprednol etabonate and Moxifloxacin (Kitmox-LD Eye Drop) are some fo commonly prescribed medicine for different complications.
On the basis of the overall prevailing condition, the doctor may prescribe some relevant medications.
Outlook
Having a good vision helps you interact with the world around you. Your eye health is vital for your everyday functioning. Some eye problems can be easily cured. While some eye disorders can only be treated, not be cured entirely. If you notice any changes in your vision, it is essential to take the help of a professional.
Your best defence against eye disorders is regular check-ups because eye disorders do not have early symptoms.
