Essay Sample on Cataracts: Causes & Types of Cloudy Vision Impairment

Introduction

A cataract is when there is an impairment of the eye's ordinary lens. It is regarded to be a significant cause of impaired eye judgment to older people who have attained the age of forty and above. A cataract is also the leading cause of blindness in the global world. There are three types of cataracts.

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Congenital cataracts can be described as the ability of a lens to be cloudy, which could cause an impaired vision, and a person can be affected even after birth. Congenital cataracts subjects one to severe discomforts whereby the cloudiness of some lens does not develop quickly and they are also visually inconsequential while other types of cataracts can give reflective visual damage. Congenital cataracts can be unilateral and mutual (Zhao, & Chen, 2015). The classifications done through morphology involves the definition of cataracts through distinct or alleged hereditary sources.

The type of cataract is classified according to the part of the lens that is affected. The type of cataract that arises behind the eye lens is referred to as subscapular cataracts. People who have diabetes and those who take a large amount of steroid dose treatment are in a high risk of evolving a subcapsular cataract. The type of cataract which develops in the deep middle part of the eye lens is referred to as Nuclear cataract. This type of cataract is usually connected to old age. This type of cataract affects most of the older people who experienced difficulties in preserving and treating eye complexions and diseases.

Another type of cataracts which affects the part of the eye lens, which encloses the central zone of the eye called the central Nucleus or rather the Cortex is referred to as cortical cataract. The cortical cataract is involved with the formation of white cloudiness, which is shaped like a wedge and it develops at the edge of the eye lens and spreads to affect the central part of the eye lens.

Signs and Symptoms of Cataracts

When a cataract starts to develop, it slightly affects the vision of an individual. One can begin to realize that there is a blurred vision which is like viewing an object with a cloudy concept. One starts to notice that when trying to view the light from the sun, the light is seen to be very bright and too visible. A person who is starting to develop cataracts may find that there is a difference of increased glaring of lights at night and does not look at the lights like how it used to be before (Long, & Li, 2017). The development of cataracts can also lead to the poor vision of the colors because the colors may appear dimmer than before. After some time, the enhanced vision starts to fade, and the cataract becomes worse. Exceptionally, the type of cataract which does not readily show the signs and symptoms until it is well developed is the subcapsular cataract and gives a reason to visit an optician regularly.

Causes of Cataracts

The lens inside the eye works by concentrating light on the Retina to produce a clear sight. Since the lens is commonly made of water and protein which is arranged to keep the glass clear, the proteins and water gradually clumps together to form a cloud in a small area as an individual age and makes it harder to view things (Traboulsi & Vanderveen, 2016). Some other causes include smoking, diabetes, and exposure to ultraviolet radiations.

Prevention

It has been professionally found that taking high diets of vitamin C, E, and the carotenoids lutein present in food can significantly decrease the danger of cataract development.

Treatment

Adversely developed cataracts are treated through surgery. Besides the newly developed IOLs that make operation more efficient for the surgeons, the lenses are significantly useful for patients.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the best way to know if one has cataracts is to see an optician for a complete eye examination. Eye diseases affect patients and members of the community in general due to hospital bills and patient discomforts.

References

Zhao, L., Chen, (2015). Lanosterol reverses protein aggregation in cataracts. Nature, 523(7562), 607.

Traboulsi, E. I., Vanderveen (2016). Associated systemic and ocular disorders in patients with congenital unilateral cataracts: the Infant Aphakia Treatment Study experience. Eye, 30(9), 1170.

Long, E. & Li, J. (2017). An artificial intelligence platform for the multihospital collaborative management of congenital cataracts. Nature biomedical engineering, 1(2), 0024.