The Best Treatment for Retinal Detachment

Your vision processes the amount of light your eyes take in, and your retina is a key part of how that works. When light hits your eye, the rays converge as they land on your retina, which is behind the iris and lens. It manages the detailed and peripheral vision through the macula and peripheral retina, and sends the information to your brain to process the information and form an image.

There are several ways this part of your eye can be damaged. A retinal detachment is one of them, and it’s a serious condition that affects about 1 in 1,000 people and can lead to severe vision loss. Fortunately, there are many treatments that can help restore vision. If you’re dealing with this problem, here are some ways we can help.

Residents of Muncie, Indiana, showing signs of retinal detachment can get help from board-certified ophthalmologist Dr. Jeffrey Rapkin and his staff at Retina Consultants of Muncie.

Defining a retinal detachment

As the name implies, this is the medical term for the separation of the retina from the layer of blood cells that nourish the eye with oxygen. The longer you struggle with a detached retina, the greater the risk of permanent vision damage. There are three types of retinal detachment:

• Rhegmatogenous: caused by a hole or retinal tear

• Tractional: the result of scar tissue building up (often due to diabetes) on your retina

• Exudative: occurs when leaking blood vessels cause fluid buildup

Without proper treatment, this condition will only worsen and lead to blindness as the retina has lost the blood supply that helps it function properly.

Causes and symptoms

Retinal detachment typically affects just one eye, though it can occur in both. It can be caused by several factors, including diabetic neuropathy, tumors, a history of eye surgery or eye trauma, family history, extreme nearsightedness (myopia), and inflammation of the choroid (the vascular layer of your eye). Certain eye conditions, such as wet macular degeneration, also increase your risk. As you age, changes in your eye, such as the liquefying of the vitreous (the gel-like white area of your eye), can increase your risk as well.

Symptoms may start mildly and without pain, but if you’re experiencing flashes of light, floaters, blurred vision, or changes like shadows in your peripheral vision or a dark veil over your general vision, you should get your vision checked soon.

Treatment and management

To deal with a retinal detachment, we offer many solutions:

• Laser therapy: light energy seals the retina in place by creating a scar

• Pneumatic retinopexy: a gas bubble seals the tear and prevents further tearing

• Scleral buckle: a silicone band holds the retina in place

• Vitrectomy: replacing your natural vitreous with air or gas to push the retina in place

Repairs are highly successful, and finding the best solution is going to be a question of how far along your condition is and your specific needs. Make an appointment with Dr. Rapkin and Retina Consultants of Muncie today to get the help you need to see clearly again.