Ophthalmology is a field of clinical medicine that studies eye diseases: pathological conditions of the eyeball and the accessory apparatus of the eye – lacrimal glands, eyelids, conjunctiva, as well as bone and soft tissue structures surrounding the eyes.
The most important task of ophthalmology is the development and improvement of methods for the prevention, detection and treatment of eye diseases aimed at preserving and correcting visual function. Specialists in the field of eye diseases are ophthalmologists. More narrow ophthalmological specialties include surgical and laser ophthalmology, ophthalmooncology, ophthalmic traumatology, pediatric ophthalmology, etc.
The visual analyzer is a unique sense organ in its meaning. With the help of vision, a person receives up to 80% of information about the world around him. Unfortunately, the percentage of people suffering from eye diseases worldwide is steadily increasing. Therefore, it is so important to have an idea of the first signs of eye diseases, measures for the prevention of ophthalmopathology and ways of its treatment, as well as to understand the importance of timely seeking qualified ophthalmological care.
A disease of this category can occur at any age: they can be genetically determined, congenital, acquired. In children, a significant decrease and loss of vision leads to a delay in mental development, negatively affects the speech function, the motor sphere in the future, forms distorted, fuzzy, fragmentary ideas about the surrounding reality, makes it difficult to establish social ties and behavioral skills in society.
In this regard, the system of early care in ophthalmology provides screening of newborns, children of early, preschool and school age in order to identify subclinical signs (retinopathy of prematurity, strabismus, amblyopia, glaucoma, cataracts, myopia, hyperopia, etc.) and provide early correctional medical and pedagogical assistance.
Acquired diseases can be associated with common and infectious human diseases: beriberi A, measles rubella, diabetes mellitus, injuries, chronic foci of bacterial infection, hypertension, atherosclerosis, renal pathology, neurological diseases, pregnancy pathology, etc. Most often in ophthalmology eye diseases are diagnosed, characterized by abnormalities in the optical apparatus of the eye – hyperopia, presbyopia, myopia, astigmatism, etc.
A large group of eye diseases consists of inflammatory pathology of various structures of the organ of vision – conjunctivitis, keratitis, blepharitis, iridocyclitis, retinitis, uveitis, endophthalmitis, barley, etc. Traumatic damage to the structures of the eye is extremely dangerous in its consequences – burns, mechanical damage to the eyes, ingestion of foreign bodies.
Diseases can develop acutely or gradually, suddenly manifesting itself with a sharp decrease in vision. This kind of pathology primarily includes diseases of the neurovascular apparatus of the eye: atrophy of the optic nerve, ischemic neuropathy of the optic nerve, occlusion of the arteries and veins of the retina, chorioretinal dystrophy, etc. Factors that negatively affect the function of vision and increase the risk of eye diseases are considered age, chronic heart and vascular diseases, metabolic diseases, adverse environmental conditions, stress, smoking, deficiency of vitamins and rare trace elements (zinc, selenium), etc.
The last decades have been marked by the rapid development of ophthalmology. At the disposal of specialists today are modern equipment, innovative technologies, minimally invasive techniques. To detect eye diseases, a large range of diagnostic techniques is used – test, biometric, ultrasound, electrophysiological, X-ray, optical, laboratory, etc. Laser installations used for vision correction, treatment of corneal and retinal pathology, glaucoma and cataracts have found wide application in the surgery of eye diseases.
Traditional therapeutic manipulations, hardware methods of vision correction, microsurgical techniques for the treatment have not lost their relevance in ophthalmology. To date, most surgical interventions in ophthalmology can be performed on an outpatient basis.
Ocular demodicosis is a pathology caused by parasitization of a conditionally pathogenic tick of the genus Demodex – acne gland. Clinically, the disease is manifested by itching, hyperemia of the eyelids, loss of eyelashes, accumulation of purulent masses in the corners of the eyes mainly in the morning. Diagnosis of demodecosis includes microscopic examination, biopsy…
Color blindness is a congenital, rarely acquired pathology of vision, characterized by abnormal color perception. Clinical symptoms depend on the form of the disease. Patients lose the ability to distinguish one or more colors to varying degrees. Diagnosis of color blindness is carried out using the Ishihara test, FALANT test, anomaloscopy and Rabkin polychromatic tables.…
Hyperopia (hypermetropia) is a refractive disorder in which images of objects focus not on the retina, but in the plane located behind it. With farsightedness, the ability to distinguish objects in the vicinity significantly worsens. In addition, hyperopia is accompanied by increased visual fatigue, headaches, burning in the eyes; high degrees of hypermetropia – poor…
Dacryocystitis is an inflammatory process in the lacrimal sac that develops against the background of obliteration or stenosis of the nasolacrimal canal. Dacryocystitis is manifested by constant lacrimation, mucopurulent discharge from the eyes, hyperemia and swelling of the lacrimal muscle, conjunctiva and semilunar fold, swelling of the lacrimal sac, local soreness, narrowing of the eye…
Dacryostenosis is a pathological narrowing of the tear ducts. There are congenital and acquired forms of dacryostenosis. Clinically, both forms manifest themselves in approximately the same way: lacrimation, lacrimation, purulent discharge from the affected eye. Diagnosis is carried out using basic methods (biomicroscopy, visometry, tonometry) and special (tubular samples, diagnostic washing and radiography of the…
Dacryolithiasis is a disease characterized by the formation of concretions (dacryolites) in the lacrimal duct. The main clinical symptoms are a feeling of “bursting”, soreness in the inner corner of the eye, impaired tear outflow, conjunctival hyperemia. To make a diagnosis, a physical examination, biomicroscopy, ultrasound of the eye, dacryocystography, Norn and Schirmer samples are…
Dacryoadenitis is an inflammatory lesion of the lacrimal gland. It rarely occurs on its own, more often it serves as a complication of various diseases. There are acute and chronic forms. Clinically acute dacryoadenitis is manifested by edema and pain in the projection of the lacrimal gland, a change in the shape of the eye…
Vitreous hernia is a pathological protrusion of the vitreous body into the anterior chamber of the eye. The main clinical manifestations of the disease are represented by a decrease in visual acuity, the appearance of a “fog” or “veil” in front of the eyes, headache. To make a diagnosis, biomicroscopy, OCT, ultrasound, gonioscopy, visometry are…
Fungal conjunctivitis is ophthalmomycosis characterized by subacute or chronic inflammation of the conjunctiva caused by pathogenic fungi. Depending on the type of pathogen, fungal conjunctivitis can occur with catarrhal or purulent inflammation, the formation of films or nodular infiltrates on the mucous membrane of the eyes; often the disease takes the form of keratoconjunctivitis. The…
Posner-Schlossman syndrome is a paroxysmal benign hypertension of the eye. Characteristic signs of the disease: blurred vision, sudden increase in intraocular pressure (IOP) and the appearance of corneal precipitates. For the diagnosis of the disease, tonometry, biomicroscopy, ophthalmoscopy, gonioscopy, perimetry, electronic tonography are indicated. For immediate relief of signs of hypertension, beta-blockers are prescribed. Pathogenetic…
