Chiropractic Healing Works

Chiropractic Healing Works

4 Rare Eye Disease's You Need To Be Aware Of

by Charlie Berry

The human eye is a delicate and wondrous instrument, an organ that can easily be taken for granted. When you visit your eye doctor, like those at the Advanced Retinal Institute Inc, one of the things he or she does during even a basic checkup is to examine your eyes for any signs of a variety of rare diseases or conditions. When the doctor hits your eyes dead on with a bright light, or brushes the surface of your eyes with a puff of air, he or she is likely performing a test to check for some of these rare diseases.    

Macular Dystrophy  

This is a rare condition, but one that became more well-known recently after conservative commentator Glenn Beck announced that he'd been diagnosed with the disease. It involves the area of the retina that collects light stimulus and interprets it—the macula.

With macular dystrophy, the cells that make up that area begin to fail over time, leaving the sufferer with blind spots in the main field of vision. This disease is not to be confused with the more common macular degeneration, which is typically a symptom of aging in the elderly.

Macular dystrophy appears to be genetic in nature, and typically strikes gradually in young and middle-aged adults.    

CMV Retinitis  

Medical experts estimate that 80% of adults have at one point or another fought off CMV retinitis, a virus called cytomegalovirus. Most healthy adults have immune systems that easily fight off incursions by this virus and will never suffer the consequences. However, persons who have other health conditions that may dramatically lower immune systems—like AIDS, those undergoing chemotherapy, or someone suffering a nasty bout of pneumonia—may be at risk for CMV.

The condition is treatable, typically by simply boosting a patient's immuno-suppressive system through drug therapy. However, CMV must be diagnosed early, before it can cause permanent structural damage to the retina inside the eye.    

Stargardt's Disease  

This is a particularly nasty disease of the eye. It is a variation of macular dystrophy, but tends to cause blind spots leading to complete blindness in children and young adults. The disease is believed to be caused by rare genetic factors in both parents that are passed on.

Diagnosing Stargardt's early is a key to treating it, as doctors have found some success in slowing its progression by reducing light exposure in patients.

When you see younger children forced to wear tinted glasses at all times (even indoors), it may be a sign of a doctor's prescribed best treatment for Stargardt's.    

Fuch's Corneal Dystrophy  

Fuch's is an uncommon disease that affects adults as they move from middle age into their elder years.

As the name implies, it affects the cornea, or the clear surface of the eye. It occurs when the inner layer of that structure begins to break down and fails to regulate enough fluid to keep the cornea clear. Patients can report blind spots and sensitivity to light that leads to constant eye pain.

While treatments exist for this disease, as is usually the case early detection is a key. One warning with Fuch's is no one suffering from even a mild case should risk Lasik surgery. Indeed, one of the pre-operative procedures most laser eye clinics will perform is an extensive test for Fuch's and other disorders of the cornea.  

Typically a visit to the eye doctor is a fairly quick and easy one, and it can be annoying when he or she wants to run additional diagnostics and tests that turn a 20 minute appointment into one much longer. As has been shown here, however, there are reasons why your doctor may want to take a closer look. It's entirely possible those reasons may be linked to these four rare eye diseases. Trust your doctor, ask questions, and keep yourself educated about the health of your eye.


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About Me

Chiropractic Healing Works

I used to be skeptical about chiropractic healing. However, that was before I tried it for myself. I was in an accident that did serious damage to my back. I followed all of the doctor’s recommendations, did my physical therapy, and still didn’t feel any better. That was when I finally decided to try going to my friend’s chiropractor. It was such a relief when I finally started to feel better thanks to the great chiropractic care I received. That’s when I decided to start researching chiropractic care and how it could be used to treat different conditions. This blog contains the results of that research. If you’re looking for a way to feel better, you too may benefit from chiropractic healing. These articles will help you learn how.

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