Myopia is not a rare occurrence. Every day you can meet a person who squints while looking at something away from himself. This is due to the fact that objects at a distance seem blurry and fuzzy to him, while things that are close can easily be considered in detail. High degree myopia is a severe stage of myopia, which requires special medical attention.
Pathology characteristics
If a person is diagnosed with high myopia, then this indicates abnormalities and eye disease, which can lead to irreversible consequences. With such a pathology, a picture is formed in front of the retina, which creates the effect of foggy and fuzzy.
With myopia, the eyeball of a person has an uncharacteristic oval shape. It is for this reason that the cornea is located at a non-standard distance from the retina, which is why vision problems arise.
Changes in the quality of human vision, deviations from the norm, are expressed in diopters. High degree myopia of the eye is fixed in the presence of six diopters with a minus sign. This phenomenon requires immediate medical attention and appropriate treatment.
How does myopia manifest itself?
High myopia in rare cases can lead to complete loss of vision, but in modern medicine, such cases are classified as exceptions. In people who suffer from myopia in a severe stage, the following symptoms are observed:
- Eyes get tired much faster than in healthy people. Especially when watching TV or working at a computer.
- Due to increased tension, a constant desire to squint to consider something better, regular headaches occur.
- Squinting itself is also defined as a symptom of a person with myopia.
- Often there are pains in the eyes.
- The eyeball lengthens.
Myopia, including myopia, can be congenital or acquired. Most often, it appears during the period of growth of the body, unless, of course, it was born with a person.
A high degree of myopia can be diagnosed at any age, and the disease develops both against the background of hereditary causes and due to mechanical intervention.
How does myopia appear
Medicine is unanimous in the opinion that a person’s vision is formed in the period from 7 to 20 years, after which it can normalize, and mild myopia (against the background of external factors) is not considered dangerous. The severe stage of myopia develops mainly for two reasons:
- As a consequence of the development of progressive myopia.
- As a hereditary factor.
The rapid development of pathology can lead to serious complications, as already mentioned, even to loss of vision. The hereditary form of myopia can lead to loss of vision up to minus 20-30 diopters, which, in fact, speaks of practical blindness. It is proved that the genetic factor is a catalyst for the development of the disease.
Causes of Severe Myopia
Among the causes of high myopia are:
- The presence of this pathology in one of the parents makes the child more prone to vision problems.
- Incorrect observance of visual hygiene, especially in childhood, when there is a basic process of vision formation, excessive sitting at the computer.
- Ignoring the first symptoms of decreased quality of vision, lack of necessary treatment.
- Unforeseen traumatic brain injuries, which, with an unfavorable development, affect the organs of vision.
- Changing the shape of the eyeball.
A person is assigned a disability with high myopia, the disability group is determined by the severity of each individual case. It is important to take into account the fact that a person is able to lead an independent life and carry out labor activities. Medical data are reviewed annually and the disability group can be changed.
Complete loss of vision is defined as the disability of the first group.
Complications of Severe Myopia
If the disease is left without proper medical attention, this can lead to serious complications:
- Retinal detachment and loss of vision. This occurs against the background of a change in the shape of the eyeball, retinal thinning, which greatly increases the level of eye strain. If there is a rupture or detachment of the retina, then medical attention is needed immediately.
- An increase in intraocular pressure (glaucoma), which can also lead to blindness.
- Visual defects that are expressed in distortion of the central image. This phenomenon is called retinal degeneration.
- Cataracts, or clouding of the eye lens, as a result of which vision is rapidly deteriorating.
The adverse effects of pathology can develop at any age and even after operations to eliminate myopia.
High degree myopia in both eyes or only one requires constant monitoring by an ophthalmologist. This will allow time to detect dangerous thinning of the retina. A dangerous sign is the appearance of a veil in front of the eyes, as well as visual distortion of objects.
How to stop the development of myopia
Modern medicine has methods for treating high myopia, so a patient with such a diagnosis does not make sense to panic. The first task of an ophthalmologist is to stop the development of the disease and prevent dangerous complications, in this situation it is impossible to delay.
The patient should remember well that with a diagnosis of myopia from daily habits, it is necessary to exclude heavy physical exertion, sports.
Glasses or lenses
High grade myopia correction with glasses is used for both adults and children.
Before prescribing such treatment, the doctor must conduct a full examination and find the right pair. A high level of myopia requires the obligatory wearing of glasses, and if the treatment is selected in a timely manner, then vision can be significantly improved, in some cases completely restored.
If myopia is detected in a child, wearing glasses is mandatory. It is important to remember that you need to gradually accustom a little child to glasses.
The treatment of high myopia in adults with glasses allows for immediate use. However, in the process of wearing them, unpleasant sensations, headaches, and increased eye fatigue may occur. Such phenomena should be immediately reported to the ophthalmologist in order to choose more suitable lenses.
Conventional contact lenses are not entirely applicable for the treatment of myopia, the effect of them is much smaller than that of glasses. Therefore, as a convenient accessory, lenses are irreplaceable in certain conditions, but it is not necessary to rely on them to cure vision.
Modern medicine has interesting methods for restoring vision. One of them is wearing special night lenses. At that moment, while a person is sleeping, lenses have a beneficial effect on the cornea of the eye. After awakening, the lenses are removed, and the shape of the cornea remains changed, which greatly improves the patient's vision.
Laser vision correction
Laser operation of myopia of a high degree of showing to those patients for whom treatment with glasses did not help or did not bring the expected results. In modern practice, laser vision correction is a fairly common procedure, which in most cases leads to the desired goal.
In the case of high degree myopia, a similar operation is performed if the vision does not fall above minus 15 diopters. Otherwise, this type of treatment will be useless.
It is important that if the patient is initially not ready to use glasses for a long time, then laser correction can be performed bypassing this stage. At the time of the procedure, the doctor acts on the cornea of the eye and changes its shape; at the end of the operation, the patient’s visual picture is gradually restored. Vision returns to normal, or improves significantly.
Eye lens replacement and intraocular lenses
A similar complex operation is indicated in cases of visual impairment to minus 20 diopters, but no more. In this case, the natural eye lens is removed, and an intraocular lens is implanted in its place, which will continue to function as the remote part of the eye.
If the patient suffers from an even higher form of myopia, then up to 25 diopters, it is possible to use intraocular lenses, which become a real salvation for people with severe pathology. Such an operation is possible if the natural lens has not completely lost its functions, and then the lens is implanted in the anterior or posterior chamber of the eyeball. The method significantly improves vision, but does not change the shape of the cornea of the eye.
Any surgical intervention is possible only with a stable course of the disease
Vitamin Health Support
In combination with the main treatment, the patient can be prescribed a course of vitamins, as well as nootropic drugs. Vitamin and drug support for the body is most often prescribed in the form of a course dose.
Properly selected treatment allows you to stop the progression of the disease and return the patient to vision.
Myopia and pregnancy
Ophthalmologists agree that during pregnancy, a woman diagnosed with a high degree of myopia should be regularly monitored by a doctor who will monitor her vision.
During natural birth attempts, there is a high risk of detachment of the retina or damage to the choroid from excessive stress and increased intraocular pressure.
In such cases, obstetricians rely heavily on the opinion of an optometrist who monitors the cornea of a woman’s eye. If the risk of adverse effects is great, then it is often recommended to abandon natural birth and resort to cesarean section.
It is important to remember that even after giving birth, a woman with a similar diagnosis must be observed by a doctor in order to track the development of the pathology and take the necessary measures in time.
Briefly about the main thing
In order to prevent loss of vision, you can not neglect the basic rules:
- Do not sit for a long time at the computer unnecessarily.
- Provide the workplace with good lighting.
- Do not read in transport or lying down.
At the first signs of a deterioration in the quality of vision, you should consult a doctor who will determine the need for treatment.
Medical practice proves that a high degree of myopia is not a verdict if it is discovered in time and selected with competent methods for restoring vision. Only a specialized doctor can do this with the full confidence of the patient.