Basic Lesson in Eye Anatomy
The eye is the most sophisticated camera ever designed. This camera is made of living tissue that includes many complex lenses, light and task-adjusted apertures for focus, zoom, motility, depth perception, color, contrast, etc. With advances in modern medicine, most lenses of the eye are replaceable or correctible through LASIK, refractive surgery, glasses, contacts, various corneal transplants, cataract surgery and even clear lens exchange.
However, many parts of the eye derive from brain tissue during fetal development and cannot be replaced. This includes the camera film (retina), the wire to the processor (optic nerve) and the processor itself (brain). All are required for us to experience quality vision as we know it. And we too often take our vision for granted.
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The majority of painful eye conditions involve the surface of the eye because most pain-sensing nerve fibers are external. Thankfully, this pain signals many sight-threatening conditions, which is why if you’re experiencing eye pain, you should seek urgent eyecare. Reacting quickly to painful eye conditions for timely care often results in better outcomes, assuming the patient receives the right diagnosis and management plan.
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Too often patients experience acute vision loss and regret not seeking quality urgent eyecare sooner. But how should one react to painless vision loss?
As discussed above, most pain-sensing nerve fibers are external and on the surface of the eye whereas the retina and optic nerve have limited ability to feel pain. This is why sudden damage to internal eye structures, like those that occur during a stroke, are often painless.
Many patients experiencing sudden painless vision loss in one eye and seeking emergency medical care often receive an expensive work up due to the inability to properly examine the eye. Sudden painless vision loss in one eye can be confused with suffering a stroke. With eye damage, wasted time often equates to irreversible vision loss. The list of reasons for sudden, painless vision loss in one eye is long and typically involves danger to the retina and optic nerve. Don’t wait.
A stroke involving the visual pathways more commonly results in sudden painless vision loss in both eyes simultaneously. Such vision loss in both eyes may be associated with other neurologic symptoms. These patients are better served in a traditional emergency room setting.
EyeCare Now is committed to fighting blindness by educating both patients and healthcare providers in recognizing the signs and symptoms that need urgent eye care. ECN works through social media, continuing medical education events and any other avenue that allows us to educate both patients and urgent eyecare providers. When it comes to treating the eye, EyeCare Now strives to deliver timely care and meet evidence-based standards of excellence while providing a positive patient experience. In addition, we seek to expand the standard of care by offering eligible patients new treatments and access to promising clinical trials through our RVC Research partner.
Thank you for choosing EyeCare Now.
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