Saturday, June 11, 2016
This can be caused by many different things, including abnormalities in the development of the eye or injury to eye structures from things like prematurity related retinopathy or infections or by developmental problems or injury to the parts of the brain responsible for vision. Some of the factors placing an infant, toddler, or child at significant risk for visual impairment include:
- Prematurity, low birth weight, needing to be treated with oxygen at birth, or bleeding in the brain
- Family history of retinoblastoma, congenital cataracts, or metabolic or genetic disease
- Infection of mother during pregnancy such as rubella, toxoplasmosis, cytomegalovirus, HIV, and some sexually transmitted infections including herpes, gonorrhea and chlamydia)
- Problems with the central nervous system such as developmental delay, cerebral palsy, seizures, or hydrocephalus.
- Macular degeneration deterioration of the central part of the retina
- Cataracts clouding of the lens of the eye
- Glaucoma damage to the nerve connecting the eye to the brain caused by increased pressure inside the eye
- Eye injuries
- Tumors involving the eye or surrounding structures in the head and neck
PREVENTION
- Protect your eyes from sunlight and other ultraviolet (UV) light exposure (such as tanning beds). Wearing UV-protective sunglasses and a wide-brimmed hat helps to limit UV exposure to the eyes.
- Wear protective eyewear when working with tools or during recreational activities. Eye injuries are a common cause of vision loss for individuals in the United States.
- Schedule regular eye examinations to detect inadequate vision correction, find cataracts, test for glaucoma, and evaluate general eye health.
- Stop smoking. Smoking has been linked to development of cataracts and macular degeneration in addition to all the other health problems smoking causes.
- Treat chronic diseases, especially diabetes. Good control of blood sugar levels will help reduce your chances of developing diabetic retinopathy, the eye problem caused by diabetes. Regular screening eye examinations for persons with diabetes may help to detect diabetic retinopathy sooner. This may limit eye damage by making earlier treatment possible.
