Warning Signs of Age-Related Eye Problems

CHICAGO, IL, September 21, 2012 (Press-News.org) As you age, your eyes will begin to change along with the rest of your body, making you more susceptible to certain eye problems and diseases that can damage your vision. It's important to know what these age-related eye problems are, and the symptoms associated with their onset.

Make sure you are receiving a full eye exam from an experienced ophthalmologist every year to ensure you detect the onset of any age-related eye problems in their early stages.

Cataracts

Cataracts are one of the most common age-related eye diseases. Some people mistakenly think of cataracts as a cloudy film that develops over the surface of the eye. This is not exactly true. Cataracts involve a clouding of your eye's entire lens, rendering it less transparent and therefore interfering with vision.

Diabetes, smoking, and the use of steroids can cause cataracts to develop earlier in life. If your vision has grown so poor that it interferes with your daily tasks and activities - such as driving, reading, or watching TV - you may have developed cataracts. Many patients who have cataracts also experience glare or halos from oncoming headlights at night, or near light bulbs. Your color vision may also be less vivid than it once was.

Glaucoma

For most people, glaucoma does not come with noticeable symptoms until the optic nerve has suffered damage, and peripheral (side) vision is lost. Because of this, it is essential to receive regular eye exams in order to detect glaucoma in its early stages.

Open-angle glaucoma - the most common form of this eye disease - does not have any symptoms at first. The pressure in your eye builds gradually, until the optic nerve is finally damaged. If open-angle glaucoma is not treated, patients are at risk of total blindness.

In contrast, acute angle-closure glaucoma often comes with severe pain, vomiting, nausea, blurred vision, and a rainbow halo that is perceived around lights. Acute angle-closure glaucoma is considered a medical emergency, and should be treated immediately to prevent blindness. Left untreated, this type of glaucoma can cause blindness in as little time as two days.

Macular Degeneration

Symptoms of dry macular degeneration usually develop slowly over a long period of time. You may notice changes in your vision, such as:

- The need for brighter light when reading
- Difficulty adapting to lower light levels
- Printed words are more blurry than before
- Colors are not as vivid
- Recognizing faces is difficult
- Overall vision is more hazy
- Blurry or blind spots in the center of your field of vision

Dry macular degeneration can affect only one or both of your eyes. If it is only in one of your eyes, you may notice none of the above symptoms, since your good eye will compensate for the weak one. This is why it is so important to have your vision regularly checked by an experienced ophthalmologist. Wet macular degeneration shares many of the same symptoms as dry macular degeneration, except that the symptoms develop more quickly and can worsen rapidly.

If you have further questions about age-related eye diseases, please visit the website of experienced Chicago eye doctor Dr. Mark Golden at Doctors For Visual Freedom today at www.doctorsforvisualfreedom.com.