Retinal Tears and Detachment PDF

etinal detachment is a serious eye
problem which effects one of every
10,000 people. Retinal detachment
most of ten occurs after the age of 40
as a result of the na tural agi ng process .
Person s who are severely nearsig hted,
have a family history of retinal problems,
or have undergone eye surgery are more
likely to develop the disease. A significant
eye injury may cause retinal detachmen t as
well. Unless treated early, retinal detachment leads to sight l oss a nd possib ly
blindness.
R
What is the retina?
Normal Eye
retina which is resp onsible for the fine,
detailed vision used for reading and driving. The peripheral retina is the outer area
of the retina which prov ides side or
peripheral vision .
What is retinal detachment?
Retinal detachment occurs when the
retina becomes separated from the back
wall of the eye. When the retina becomes
detached, its blood supply is reduced and
its ability to process light rays is impaired
If total detachment occurs, the retina
becomes useless, as it can no longer transmit information to the brain, and the eye
becomes blind.
However, sometimes the vitreous rema ins
attached to the retina and then the shrinking of the vitreous causes the retina to tear.
These tears usually occur in the periphera l
retina where there is little effect on vision.
Left untreated however, retinal tea rs can
lead to retinal detachment. Once a retina l
tear is present, fluid from the vitreous may
seep through the tea r into the space
between the retina and the wall of the eye.
The fluid causes the retina to separate from
the back of the eye or detach . The part of
the retina which becomes detached will not
function properly, resulting in vision loss.
Retinal detachment can also be caused
tumors, inflammation and complicaof diabetes. With these types of
no holes or tears occur in the
ent of the disease causing the
-Only way to allow the
position.
may develop without any
symptoms. In other cases, the
us gel pulling away from the retina
ay cause the patient to see flashes of
li@lt.
Light travels through the ey e and
isfocused on the retina.
The retina is a thin layer of light sensitive tissue which lines the back of the eye.
When light enters the eye, it is focused by
the cornea and lens onto the retina. The
retina then transforms the light images into
electrical impulses which are sent to the
brain by the optic nerve.
The re tina has tw o ma in pa r ts - the
macula and the per ipheral retina. The
macula is a small area in the center of the
Floaters, which appear as black spots or
lines in the field of vision, may result from
bleeding of torn retinal vessels or the formation of small clumps of vitreous matter.
Floaters and flashes do not always indicate
a serious problem such as retinal tears, but
a complete eye examina- .-- -., tion is necessary to determine their significance.
Once retinal detachmen t occu rs, the
patient may notice a wavy or watery quality in their vision. If detachment occurs in
the peripheral retina, a curtain or shadow
may appear across the field of vision. If the
area of detachment is in the macula, central
vision will be distorted and reduced . The
patient will be unable to read or see in fine
detail. Occasionally, detachment occurs
suddenly and is accompanied by a total
loss of vision.
How are retinal tears and
detachment diagnosed?
A retinal
detachment
may cause a ......., ...........
curtain or shadow to app ear across the
field of vision (left ) or cause images to
have a wavy or watery app earance (right).
Vitreous Gel
pulling away
from the retina
Tech ni qu es invol v ing the slit la mp,
direct and indirect ophthalmoscopes and
specialized contact lenses are used to see
into the back of the eye. Fundus photography, flourescein angiography or computerized oph thalmic imaging may be used to
help pinpoint small leaks in blood vessels
and damage to the retina that can not be
detected with a visual examination . Visual
field test ing a lso helps in detec t ing
Eric Collier, DO
Board Certified Ophthalmologist
General Ophthalmology
Laxmi V. Devisetty, MD
Board Certified - Fellowship Trained
Retina and Vitreous Disease and Surgery
Gregory C. Hazen, MD
Board Certified – Fellowship Trained
Oculoplastic Surgery
Refractive Surgery
Comprehensive Ophthalmology
Shafiq Jivangee, MD
Board Certified – Fellowship Trained
Glaucoma Specialist
Tim. H.C. Pan, DO
Board Certified
Comprehensive Ophthalmology
Sundhar R. Ramasamy, MD
Board Certified - Fellowship Trained
Retina and Vitreous Disease and Surgery
Miriam T. Schteingart, MD
Board Certified - Fellowship Trained
Cornea, External Diseases and Uveitis
Jason M. Donahue, OD
Comprehensive Optometry
Low Vision
Heidi Bauer-Skelley, OD
Comprehensive Optometry
Bobbie Monroe, Aud
Audiology
Michael D. Bain, BCO, NCLEC
Board Certified Ocularist
Artificial Eyes, Scleral Shells and Orbital Prosthetics
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