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 manifestations of HIV are specific changes in the organ of vision caused by the addition of an opportunistic infection in patients with a history of HIV infection. The clinical picture is determined by the nature of the lesion. Common symptoms for most forms are decreased visual acuity, scotomas, photopsias, color perception disorders, photophobia, increased…
Glaucoma is a chronic eye pathology characterized by increased intraocular pressure, the development of optical neuropathy and impaired visual function. Clinically, glaucoma is manifested by narrowing of the visual fields, pain, pain and a feeling of heaviness in the eyes, blurred vision, deterioration of twilight vision, in severe cases blindness. Diagnosis includes perimetry, tonometry and…
Ocular migraine is a migraine with an aura in the form of transient visual disturbances that may occur against the background of a headache or in its absence. It is clinically manifested by a feeling of flickering, loss of areas of the field of vision, the appearance of phosphenes, photopsies and scintillating cattle. Diagnosis is…
Hyphema is a pathological condition of the organ of vision, in which blood is detected in the anterior chamber of the eyes. Clinical manifestations are “fog” or “shroud” in front of the eyes, decreased visual acuity, photophobia. Diagnosis of hyphema is based on examination of the anterior parts of the eye, biomicroscopy, gonioscopy, visometry, tonometry,…
Eye hypotension is a syndrome, the pathognomonic sign of which is a decrease in intraocular pressure below 15 mmHg. The main clinical manifestations are “flies” and “floating opacities” in front of the eyes, increased visual fatigue, visual impairment, headache. Tonometry, electronic tonography, visometry, ophthalmoscopy, biomicroscopy, gonioscopy, ultrasound, Seidel filtration test are used for diagnostics. Conservative…
Optic nerve hypoplasia is a congenital anomaly characterized by a decrease in the number of axons in the structure of the affected nerve. Clinical symptoms are represented by decreased visual acuity, nystagmus, strabismus, increased fatigue. Diagnosis is based on direct ophthalmoscopy, electroretinography, CT of the head, visometry, histological and microscopic examination. Patients are shown electrostimulation…
Hypertensive retinopathy is a lesion of the retinal vessels against the background of a persistent increase in blood pressure in patients with hypertension. The main symptoms are visual impairment, increased visual fatigue, redness of the eyes, headache, the appearance of “floating opacities” and “flies” in front of the eyes. Pathology is diagnosed based on the…
Hypermetropic astigmatism is a disease in which there is no single focus of light rays on the retina due to the different radius of curvature of the optical systems of the eye. The main symptoms of the disease are decreased visual acuity, discomfort, increased visual fatigue, distortion of the object in question. The diagnostic complex…
Vitreous hemorrhage is a polyethological disease of the organ of vision, which develops due to rupture of blood vessels and hemorrhage into the vitreous body. It is clinically manifested by the presence of shadows, “fog”, floating opacity of black or red color in front of the eyes, decreased visual acuity and the development of photopsia. Ophthalmoscopy,…
Hemianopia is a polyethological disease that manifests itself by homonymous or heteronymous loss of visual fields. Characteristic symptoms: inability to see with certain halves of the eyes, visual hallucinations, phenomena of agnosia, prosopagnosia and “mental paralysis of vision” are possible. To make a diagnosis, it is necessary to conduct perimetry and computer campimetry. The etiology…
