'A Patient Voice' Community

Dear Bob4444,

Please get this evaluated by your Ophthalmologist. When it comes to protecting and preserving you vision, I don't think you can be too careful.

There are some serious issues, such as Age-Related Macular Degeneration and even diabetes and Stroke that can manifest with changes in vision, so I'd suggest seeing an expert promptly.

Best wishes,

Byroney

I talked to my eye doctor yesterday and she said since I am only 19, there is no reason to worry about those problems you mentioned. Im still concerned though. What should I do?

hello, bob --

i couldn't tell from your post, but did your ophthalmologist actually examine your eyes, or did you just talk with her on the phone?

if you're dubious about what she said or believe that her exam was not as thorough as it should have been, you need to get a second opinion, with an examination. there are lots of things that can go wrong with eyes that aren't age-related.

-- susie margaret

hello again, bob --

i think you are entirely appropriate to be concerned about a loss of central vision that lasts for 20 mins at a time, and so after my previous post i did some very short internet research on eye problems. i want to make clear that i am not a medical person (see PS), but with that caveat, here are some additional thoughts.

many conditions can affect --

-- the retina, the light-sensing cells on the inside lining of the eye, or

-- the macula, the small area within the center of the retina that allows central vision.

one of these conditions is diabetes, which can cause swelling of the retina that eventually leads to changes in central vision. have you been checked for diabetes?

another problem can be a macular pucker, which is a small section of scar tissue on the retina that sometimes results, much simplified, from tiny shifts of tissue within the eye.

i offer these two ideas not in an attempt to diagnose you -- which would be impossible over the internet, in any case -- but only to expand on the statement in my previous post that many things can go wrong with eyes that are not age-related, diabetes and the possibility of a macular pucker being two of them.

how exactly did you bring this up with your ophthalmologist? did you ask you her straight-off whether you could possibly have age-related macular degeneration or a stroke (byroney's earlier-mentioned examples of conditions that can affect central vision), or did you describe your symptoms without further elaboration? in other words, did you ask for a simple yes/no answer to a theoretical Q, or did she look at your eyes and then say, no evidence of either of those problems.

if you cannot get any satisfaction from either your ophthalmologist or a second one, you might want to consult a neurologist, because sometimes conditions in the brain can affect vision as well.

please keep us posted.

-- susie margaret

PS -- i welcome, solicit, and indeed beg for correction, amendment, or replacement of inaccuracies in this post.

Hello Bob4444,

I have just experienced the exact same symptoms with both my eyes. There is a small area outlined by blurriness that exists in both eyes. When my eyes are closed, it appears as a small area of lights.

Did you ever have any luck in getting a diagnosis? Also, has your problem continued?

I am inclined to believe that the source of my problem is in my brain.

I would appreciate any information you can share about your own experience.

Thank you.

Bill

hello, bill --

you might also want to post this inquiry in the eye health community, http://exchanges.webmd.com/eye-health-community , where there is an expert on-board.

-- susie margaret

Thank you, Susie. I will