Among the most serious of the conditions which may affect the human eye is detachment of the retina. The retina is a tissue at the back of the eyeball, which apparently receives the images focused upon it by the lens of the eye and passes them to the optic nerve, so that they will be suitably recorded by the brain. Under certain circumstances this tissue may become detached, which results promptly in loss of vision.
An operation is now performed for the cure of detachment of the retina. This operative procedure is a great advance in medical art, because previously there was thought to be no hope for such cases and
most of them passed on to permanent blindness.
This condition usually afflicts men slightly more often than women, to the extent of about 60 per cent of males and 40 per cent of females. Usually it affects older rather than younger people, but a case has been recorded in a child five years old. The average is forty years. Cases of detachment of the retina also are recorded in persons as old as seventy five. In a considerable number of cases detachment of the retina seems to follow an injury of some sort. One case is reported in which the retina became detached following an attempt by a rather elderly man to cure his headaches by vibrating his skull with an electrical vibrator.
Most of the operative procedures now used involve application of chemical cauterizing substances or else application of heat for purposes of cauterization. The subsequent scarring causes the retina again to become attached to the field in which it should lie.
Cross-Eyes
For a long time any attempt to control cross-eyes in children was prevented because people superstitiously thought that cross-eyes were due to fright, shock, or prenatal impressions on the mother. A squint or walleye may develop from excessive strains placed on the external muscle of the eye by the extra effort in seeing which is required when there is an extreme degree of near sightedness Any straining of the eye or imbalance of the muscles may result in cross-eyes or squint.
Many people believe that children outgrow cross-eyes. This may happen, but in other instances the sight of a crossed eye may never develop, and in many instances the squint or crossed eye becomes worse as time goes on. Early diagnosis and treatment are essential for the best results in this condition. As soon as you notice that a child is cross-eyed a specialist in diseases of the eye should be consulted. He will make a sufficiently thorough exanimation to evaluate the factors in the case and decide on the proper treatment.
In at least half the cases of cross-eyes there seems to be some hereditary anatomical weakness in the eye; there will usually be a record of other cases somewhere in the family.
Most people have some minor muscle out of balance in their eyes. One muscle will pull harder than the other, and the strong one will overcome the weak one. In the case of cross-eyes the person affected may avoid seeing double by using only one eye at a time. This happens also in people who have one eye farsighted and the other nearsighted, if they are not balanced suitably with proper eyeglasses they will use only one eye at a time for seeing. If this is not corrected the good eye will be used and the weak one will turn. Sometimes good results are secured merely by prescribing eyeglasses which will tend to hold the two eyes in position. Children have been found quite able to tolerate eyeglasses at the age
of fifteen months. The earlier the glasses are used, the more valuable will be their effect.
It has also been suggested that the weak eye be exercised by various training devices to overcome the habit of suppressing the image of one eye. In certain types of cases, when the deficiency is very slight, this so-called "orthoptic" training is successful. Many types of apparatus have been developed by specialists in diseases of the eye for giving training of this character. The most favorable age for training is between three and six years of age. After the age of seven years the results are rarely satisfactory.
The surgical procedure for overcoming cross-eyes is most certain. Proper placement of the eye muscles will tend to bring the eye back into proper relationship to the other eye and will permit binocular vision. The operation will not improve the vision of the eye but will prevent the vision from being lost from failure to use the eye successfully. Moreover, the correction of cross-eyes is very important for establishing a proper mental attitude in the child. Children with cross-eyes may become so shy and so sensitive to laughter that they will become "shut-in" personalities and their lives be thereby ruined.
David Crawford is the CEO and owner of a Male Enhancement Products company known as Male Enhancement Group which is dedicated to researching and comparing male enhancement products in order to determine which male enhancement product is safer and more effective than other products on the market. Copyright 2010 David Crawford of http://www.maleenhancementgroup.com This article may be freely distributed if this resource box stays attached.
