By Dr. Sandy Carman
Are you wondering what causes vision loss? Most people don’t notice any changes in their vision until they’ve lost a significant portion of their vision. Normal vision is considered to be 20/20.
If you’re not sure what 20/20 vision is, it means that you can stand 20 feet away from an object and see exactly what the average person sees.
If you have 20/10 vision, it means that you can see things at 20 feet that most people can see at 10 feet.
If you have 20/30 vision, then you can see at 20 feet what most people see at 30 feet.
If you have 20/100 vision, it means that you have to be standing 20 feet away from something that most people can see at 100 feet.
Let’s take a look at what vision loss is and how you can spot it before you experience significant visual impairment.
People can experience partial or total vision loss, and it may occur slowly over the course of years, or it may occur all at once. However, it’s important to understand that sudden vision loss is an emergency, and the individual should seek the eye care services from an experienced ophthalmologist, like those at Thomas Eye Group in Atlanta, GA, in order to determine the cause and recommend treatments to preserve the remainder of the individual’s visual acuity.
Total vision loss is characterized by the complete inability to see, and this includes light. When eye doctors categorize blindness, they use the ICD-10 vision loss codes. For example, if someone is found to be blind in both eyes, the code is H54.0. If someone is experiencing unspecified vision loss, it’s code is H54.6.
It’s important to understand that only about 15 percent of all people with vision problems fall into the category of total blindness. The rest may have low vision or a vision impairment, or they might be legally blind, which is someone who has a visual acuity of 20/200 or worse with vision correction.
Partial vision loss refers to a reduction in visual acuity. For example, if you had 20/20 vision in the past, and at your most recent eye exam, they told you that you had a visual acuity of 20/60, that is considered vision loss. It’s also possible to experience peripheral vision loss or central vision loss, and if that occurs, it’s also considered a type of vision loss.
Partial vision loss can be caused by macular degeneration, glaucoma and cataracts. These three conditions typically steal vision over the course of many years. However, there are conditions that can cause sudden vision loss, and those include retinal detachment and having a stroke. Both of those conditions require emergency treatment. Additionally, some people may experience temporary vision loss from ocular migraines or optic neuritis.
Vision loss can be caused by a variety of eye diseases and conditions, including age-related macular degeneration, cataracts, glaucoma and diabetic retinopathy.
There are certain medical conditions and eye diseases that can cause vision loss, including diabetes, high blood pressure, glaucoma, migraines and injuries and infections in the eye.
Routine, comprehensive eye exams have been proven by medical research to help combat eye disease and vision loss. Schedule an appointment with a Thomas Eye Group licensed eye doctor today to care for your vision and eye health properly.
For many people, the loss of visual acuity is so slow that they don’t notice until it becomes quite advanced. An eye exam can help detect changes in vision and eye health before it becomes a noticeable problem that impacts your daily life.
Adults who are experiencing vision loss may notice:
Children may not be able to express themselves adequately in order to describe their vision issues. Instead, parents should watch for signs of vision trouble, including:
Individuals who are in their golden years may not readily report changes in their vision. This may be due to blaming their low vision on getting older. However, many vision problems can be corrected with contact lenses, glasses or surgery. Signs that an older person may be losing eyesight include:
In order to prevent severe vision loss individuals of all ages should get regular eye exams. For most people, that means scheduling a comprehensive eye health exam every two to three years. However, your medical history, vision health history and age will all factor into how often you should get your eyes examined.
Parents should schedule their child’s first eye exam once they are between the ages of 6 and 12 months. Checkups should then be scheduled between the ages of 2 and 3, and 4 and 5 years of age. These exams help ensure that your child’s eyes are developing properly. After the age of five, children should receive an annual eye exam before the start of each school year.
Thomas Eye Group recommends adults between the ages of 20-64 continue receiving an annual eye exam as vision loss and eye disease can progress unnoticed. This is particularly important if the patient wears glasses or contacts as prescriptions can change with age. It is also critical for patients that have eye health problems, medical conditions that could affect their eye health, or take medications that have certain eye-related side effects to see an eye doctor yearly or more frequently. Our eye doctors can help determine the best eye exam schedule for your eye health needs.
Senior citizens should continue receiving eye exams on a yearly basis. If eye disease or vision loss is detected, your doctor may recommend a more frequent schedule.
Getting regular eye exams can help catch vision changes and eye diseases before they rob you of your vision. At Thomas Eye Group in Atlanta, we offer eye exams for the whole family. We have pediatric ophthalmologists, adult ophthalmologists and even ophthalmologists who specialize in treating senior citizens.
The first step to protecting your vision involves getting regular eye exams. Getting regular eye exams creates a baseline for your eye doctor to compare subsequent eye exams so that changes in vision can be addressed as soon as possible. Next, you should consider some lifestyle modifications, like eating a healthy diet and getting plenty of exercise. If you do happen to develop an eye disease or condition, there are treatments available, like laser vision correction, cataract surgery and laser eye surgery.
Lifestyle modifications don’t have to be tedious or time-consuming. All you have to do is focus on getting enough activity throughout the day and eating a healthy diet. When you think about eating a healthy diet, focus on a balanced diet that is rich in vitamins that are good for eye health, including vitamin C, vitamin E and vitamin A.
Activities can be things like walking around your block, riding a bike, gardening, tennis, pickleball or another type of sport. Of course, if you’re playing a sport that includes objects flying through the air, remember to wear protective goggles.
If you happen to get cataracts, glaucoma, macular degeneration or diabetic retinopathy, there are treatments available that can help stop the vision loss.
If you get cataracts, you can have the lens of your eye removed and an artificial lens inserted in its place, and once you have cataract surgery, the cataracts cannot come back.
Glaucoma can be treated with eye drops and surgery, including microinvasive glaucoma surgery (MIGs) and flexible stent implantations to help the fluid in the eye drain.
Diabetic retinopathy can be treated with laser surgery, intraocular steroid injections and vitrectomies.
Thomas Eye Group’s 20+ Atlanta area locations offer eye exams for children, teenagers, adults and senior citizens so that you can protect your eye health and maintain your visual acuity. If you need glasses, contacts, cataract surgery or are concerned that you’re losing vision, our ophthalmologists can help you.
Ready to schedule an eye exam appointment to check your vision? Contact us at 678-892-2020.
E. Edward “Sandy” Carman, OD, is a board-licensed Comprehensive Optometrist. He offers a range of services including comprehensive eye exams with prescriptions for eyeglasses and contact lenses, and treatment of various ocular conditions such as dry eye disease, macular degeneration, glaucoma, and diabetic eye disease, among others.
