Eye disease is a health disorder that is quite common in the community. KComplaints can be in the form of red eyes, itching, burning, visual disturbances, to blindness. Of the many eye diseases, there is some common eye diseases in Indonesia.
Eye disease can attack anyone and at any time. The treatments also vary, some will heal on their own, some will require medical treatment (eg with eye pain medication) from an ophthalmologist. To anticipate this, do regular eye examinations so that eye diseases are quickly detected and treated as early as possible.
Common Eye Diseases
Here are some common eye diseases in Indonesia:
1. Conjunctivitis
This eye disease occurs when the soft tissue around the eye becomes inflamed and makes the eye red, watery, sore, and itchy. Conjunctivitis can be caused by irritation, allergies, or infection. If it is caused by a bacterial infection, the eye can become festering. This condition is one of the things that often causes eye pain in children and adults.
Treatment of conjunctivitis depends on the cause. If conjunctivitis is caused by allergies, the treatment is to stay away from allergens and use antihistamines.
If it's caused by a viral infection, conjunctivitis can go away on its own in a few days. As for conjunctivitis caused by a bacterial infection, treatment is needed with antibiotic eye drops or eye ointment.
2. Dry Eyes
Dry eyes can happen to anyone, but this complaint is more common in the elderly and in women. People with dry eyes will experience symptoms in the form of gritty eyes or a foreign object in the eye, red eyes, burning or itching, and glare.
The factors that cause it can vary, ranging from lack of tear production, autoimmune diseases, infections, irritation, allergies, nutritional deficiencies, eyes too often exposed to wind or sunlight, to side effects of drugs.
Dry eyes can be treated with tear drops (artificial tears), or medications to increase tear production. In addition, the causes of dry eyes also need to be identified and treated.
3. Cataract
Cataract is the number one cause of blindness in Indonesia. This eye disease makes the lens of the eye look cloudy so that vision becomes blurry. Cataracts are mostly suffered by people aged 60 years and over. However, in some cases, cataracts can occur at a younger age, even in newborns.
Apart from aging, which causes the protein in the lens of the eye to clump together, cataracts can also be caused by diabetes, eye injuries, UV exposure, smoking, and the side effects of certain medications, such as corticosteroids and radiation therapy. If it interferes with vision, cataracts can be treated with cataract surgery.
4. Glaucoma
In Indonesia, glaucoma is estimated to affect about 6 million people. Glaucoma occurs when the optic nerve in the eye is damaged, resulting in impaired vision and even blindness. Optic nerve damage is caused by increased pressure in the eyeball due to fluid buildup in the eye.
Glaucoma can occur at any age, but is more common in the elderly. This eye disease is one of the leading causes of blindness for people over the age of 60.
Treatment can be with oral medication or eye drops to reduce pressure inside the eyeball. Other treatment steps can be surgery, both laser surgery and conventional eye surgery.
5. Refractive errors (blurred vision)
Refractive errors make it difficult for sufferers to see clearly, because the focus of the eye does not fall where it should be. Normally, the focus of light or image of an object that is caught by the eye will fall at the back of the eye, namely on the retina.
In people with refractive errors, the focus of light does not fall exactly on the retina. As a result, objects appear blurry. In addition, refractive errors can also be caused by changes in the shape of the cornea or aging of the lens.
Refractive errors can be classified into four types, namely:
- Farsighted. Patients can not see close objects clearly because the focus of light is behind the retina.
- Nearsighted. Objects that are far away look blurry because the focus of light is in front of the retina.
- Presbyopia or old eyes, where the eyes lose the ability to see things clearly with age. This eye disease is caused by the muscles around the eyes losing their elasticity and hardening.
- Astigmatism or cylinder eyes. This condition occurs because the cornea or lens of the eye is not curved like a circle, but is more convex or concave. As a result, far and near vision will look blurry.
6. Retinal disorders
Retinal disorders can affect any part of the retina, which is the layer at the back of the eye that captures light and sends images to the brain. Here are some of the common retinal disorders:
- Retinal detachment, which is a tear or detachment of the retina due to excess fluid around it.
- Diabetic retinopathy is a retinal disorder that occurs in people with diabetes. Especially in diabetics who do not take regular treatment.
- Epiretinal membrane, namely scar tissue over the retina.
- Macular hole, which is a small defect in the center of the retina. This condition can occur when the eye is injured.
- Macular degeneration, which is a decrease in the ability to see due to aging. Complaints can be in the form of a black dot (blind spot) in the middle of the vision.
- Retinitis pigmentosa, which is a degenerative disease that affects the retina. Patients with this eye disease may experience night blindness, impaired vision, or easy glare.
7. Corneal abnormalities
The cornea is the outermost layer of the eye that helps the eye focus on capturing light or images from an object, and protects the eye from germs, dust, and harmful substances. Various conditions that can affect the cornea are:
- Eye injury.
- Allergy.
- Keratitis, which is inflammation of the cornea due to infection or irritation to certain substances.
- Corneal ulcers, which are sores or ulcers on the cornea of the eye due to infection, injury, or exposure to irritating substances in the eye. This eye disease can cause pain, watering, glare, and even blindness.
- Corneal dystrophy, which is a cornea that loses its clarity due to a buildup of certain substances on the surface or behind the corneal layer.
In addition to the various diseases above, there are still many types of eye diseases that can occur. If your vision is suddenly blurry or your eyes feel painful, swollen, or discharge, you should immediately consult an ophthalmologist for proper treatment according to the cause.
To treat eye diseases caused by infection or inflammation, you can consult an ophthalmologist who specializes in infection and immunology.