Signs & Symptoms of Eye Disease

Signs and symptoms of eye disease are not only signals that something is amiss with your vision, they could also indicate ailments in other areas of your body. Indeed, many times an ophthalmologist can diagnose signs of such ailments as diabetes by a simple eye examination. Thus paying attention your eyes give can not only save your vision, but could also possibly save your life.

Bleeding

• Never ignore bleeding, especially in the eyes. According to the Nethealthbook website, bleeding is always cause for alarm. It could be that a blood vessel is hemmorrhaging. In the case of a person with diabetes, it could be diabetic retinopathy, in which blood leaks from brittle vessels. If an ophthalmologist does not evaluate that condition right away, it could lead to blindness.

  Not only could such bleeding in the eye be an indicator that something is awry with that part of the body, but it could also indicate problems elsewhere. As the Nethealthbook website points out, hemorrhaging from the retina could be a sign of a systemic blood vessel disorder.

Blind Spots

• Blind spots could be an early sign of glaucoma. Sadly, often a patient doesn't even notice them until they invade his main area of vision. The Nethealthbook website notes that such spots could be an early sign of glaucoma. Evaluation by an eye doctor becomes key to avoiding irreversible blindness.

Blurred/Distorted Vision

• Any change in vision is a sign that you should contact your ophtalmologist. This is true especially if you notice blurriness, distortion or clouding in any part of your vision. According to the Docshop website, it could be a common ailment such as astigmatism, which means that objects appear distorted because your cornea has assumed an abnormal shape. This could also be a sign of other common eye problems such as nearsightedness and farsightedness, which a pair of eyeglasses or contacts can fix.

  Don't take it for granted, however, that your only problem is that you may need glasses or contacts. It could be that you could have the beginning signs of macular degeneration, a progressive eye disorder that leads to blindness if you leave it untreated.

Peripheral Vision Loss

• According to the Docshop website, our peripheral vision is important in that it helps us discern danger from behind. Perhaps the best example of this is when you drive or ride a bicycle. You need to be able to see on either side of you. Thus if you notice a change in your side vision, go to an ophthalmologist and have them test the pressure behind your eyeballs; it could be glaucoma. If the doctor catches this early, he might be able to save your sight. By the time the disease causes pain, or that a significant amount of your vision is already gone, it is most likely too late.