Ophthalmologists have revealed the secret of flies before the eyes

Nearsightedness, farsightedness and problems with the retina are familiar to most of the world’s population. Eye diseases have become noticeably younger, and with age, patients also face cataracts or obsessive “flies” before their eyes. Is it possible to return the lost vigilance and how often should I visit a doctor, even if my eyes are not failing yet? What is laser coagulation and can it be performed on pregnant women? Everything about the prevention and modern methods of treating eye diseases “MK” learned from ophthalmologists.

Most fears about eye health, perhaps, in pregnant women. Is it possible to give birth on your own with myopia? Will the eyes withstand the load and is there a way to somehow strengthen them just before the birth?

There is such a way, ophthalmologists reassure. Although it sounds scary – laser coagulation – but there is really nothing wrong with such a procedure. It will not harm either the mother or the baby in the womb.

“Laser coagulation is a non-invasive method of treatment,” explains Ekaterina Tebina, an ophthalmologist at the Na Presnya CDC. – There is a point effect of the laser on the damaged retina. During pregnancy, especially in patients with moderate and high myopia, laser coagulation before childbirth is even indicated. The procedure is completely painless and takes 20-30 minutes. It does not affect vision in any way.

It is simply dangerous for expectant mothers to ignore problems with the retina. During childbirth, due to the very strong load experienced by the woman’s body, retinal detachment may occur. To prevent a dangerous complication, ophthalmologists advise to undergo the procedure of “flashing” the retina with a laser in advance. It is allowed up to 37 weeks of pregnancy.

Laser coagulation is also good because it has practically no contraindications. The only situation in which doctors will give up on the procedure is clouding of the optical media of the eye.

If the expectant mother does not have detachments and other dystrophic changes in the retina, she is not even threatened with a caesarean section. Feel free to give birth yourself. But to be sure that there are no risks, a woman must be examined by an ophthalmologist twice: in the first and third trimesters of pregnancy.

However, expectant mothers are far from the only category of patients who should see an eye health specialist frequently. At risk are people with a high degree of myopia, metabolic disorders, athletes. Such patients need to undergo planned diagnostics not once a year, as is customary, but once every six months.

But even people with 100% vision can have problems with the retina. That is why it is important to visit the doctor regularly. It is better not to lead to a retinal rupture. Moreover, modern technologies allow us to solve the problem in the bud.

– We now have quite sensitive diagnostic methods, and we can detect, for example, dystrophy at a stage when the gap has not yet formed. But, of course, you don’t need to wait for it – it’s important to start preventing its occurrence here and now, ”explains Anna Semakina, head of the Ophthalmology Department at the Open Clinic.

In general, laser surgery is used not only for retinal breaks. As Anna Semakina said, this method of treatment is also needed for secondary cataracts.

– A cataract is a clouding of your own lens. In case of a cataract, we remove it and implant a soft, thin artificial lens in its place. It is placed in the sac where our own lens once was, and over time, the cells in the sac divide and crawl onto the back wall, forming a clouding of the sac. In this case, a hole is made using a laser in the back wall of this sac, so the transparency of the lens is restored,” Semakina said.

Patients may not notice retinal dystrophy and cataracts for years. But there is an eye disease that makes itself felt immediately. These are floating flies in front of the eyes. Officially, they are called destruction of the vitreous body of the eye.

“The human eye is filled with a transparent substance,” explains Ekaterina Tebina. – With age or as a result of metabolic disorders, turbidity may appear in it, in other words, destruction. If, after physical exertion, flies, a veil or a curtain appear before the eyes, this may be a change in the vitreous body, which may indirectly indicate a rupture or detachment of the retina. This is one of the reasons to visit an ophthalmologist.

If there are suddenly more flies or they suddenly appear in the eyes, this is an occasion to urgently go to an appointment with an ophthalmologist. You should not postpone going to the clinic with any other unpleasant symptoms in the eyes. Doctors warn: self-medication will negatively affect the prognosis of the disease.