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.
Night blindness (nyctalopia) is an ophthalmopathology characterized by impaired visual adaptation to low–light conditions (twilight, darkness, artificial dimming). With night blindness, the vision of objects in the dark worsens, spatial orientation at dusk and the process of light adaptation are disrupted, the fields of vision are narrowed, problems with color perception arise. Examination of patients…
Hemangioma eye is a benign vascular tumor located on the skin of the eyelids or conjunctiva and consisting of pathological vascular plexuses. The causes of hemangioma of the eye are not exactly known. There are capillary and cavernous hemangiomas, as well as mixed variants. Clinical manifestations depend on the type of hemangioma. Diagnostics is carried out…
Ectropion is an anomaly of the location of the ciliated edge, which is accompanied by its separation from the eyeball and the exposure of the palpebral and bulbar conjunctiva. Clinically, this pathology is manifested by increased lacrimation, foreign body sensation, frequent blinking, hyperemia of the skin, followed by the development of symptoms of conjunctivitis, keratitis and…
Lens dislocation is a pathology characterized by a complete displacement of the lens into the vitreal cavity or anterior chamber of the eye. Clinical manifestations of the disease: sharp deterioration of vision, soreness and discomfort in the eye socket, phacodonaise and iridodonaise. For diagnosis, visometry, ultrasound of the eye, biomicroscopy, OCT, non-contact tonometry, gonioscopy are…
Secondary cataract is a complication after cataract extraction characterized by secondary closure of the posterior capsulorexis area by connective tissue. Clinically, the disease is manifested by a progressive decrease in visual acuity, deterioration of color perception, violation of dark adaptation, diplopia, “blurring” of vision. To confirm the diagnosis, visometry, biomicroscopy of the eye, ultrasound, OPT…
Secondary glaucoma is a disease in which an increase in intraocular pressure and damage to the optic nerve occurs against the background of the main pathology of the organ of vision. It is manifested by a progressive decrease in visual acuity, pain syndrome, spasm of accommodation. The diagnosis is based on the results of gonioscopy,…
Congenital glaucoma is more often a hereditary disease accompanied by a gradual increase in intraocular pressure and related concomitant visual disturbances. The main symptoms of this pathology include an increase in the size of the eyes (in infants), soreness, which leads to anxiety and tearfulness of the child, photophobia, myopia or astigmatism. The diagnosis of…
Viral keratitis is an inflammatory lesion of the cornea of the eye caused by a viral infection. Disease is manifested by vesicular rashes, swelling and redness of the eye, corneal syndrome, ulceration and clouding of the cornea, decreased vision, neuralgic pain. In order to diagnose viral keratitis, biomicroscopy, confocal and endothelial microscopy, pachymetry and keratometry,…
Bullous keratopathy is a pathology of the cornea characterized by swelling of the shell, damage to the epithelial layer with the formation of specific “bulls”. Clinical symptoms are represented by a decrease in visual acuity, pain syndrome, sensation of a foreign body in the eye, photophobia, increased tearfulness. Biomicroscopy, keratopachimetry, ophthalmoscopy, ultrasound, visometry, tonometry, gonioscopy…
Brucellar uveitis is a bacterial inflammation of the vascular membrane of the eye caused by microorganisms of the genus brucella. The main symptoms of the disease are conjunctival hyperemia, photophobia, decreased visual acuity, the appearance of “floating opacities” and “flies” in front of the eyes. Biomicroscopy, ophthalmoscopy, non-contact tonometry, visometry, ultrasound and laboratory tests (IFR,…
