Eye conditions | Professor Adnan Tufail, MBBS, MD, FRCOphth

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD)

In the following video, Professor Adnan Tufail (Moorfields and UCL) introduces the structure of the eye, explains our current understanding about the processes that go wrong in wet and dry AMD, current treatment approaches and introduces the need for new and improved treatments in the future.

Early detection of diabetic eye disease

Diabetic eye disease is a leading cause for blindness registration among working age adults in England and Wales. It is caused by changes to the tiny blood vessels of the retina (the light sensitive layer at the back of the eye). Proliferative diabetic retinopathy is caused by abnormal new blood vessels that grow on the surface of the retina. This is the most advanced stage of diabetic retinopathy. At this stage, you may not have symptoms but are at high risk for vision loss.

In diabetic macular oedema, blood vessels leak fluid into the retina. Vision loss occurs when the fluid reaches the macula (the centre of the retina that provides sharp vision) and builds up, causing swelling. At first, you may not notice changes to your vision. Over time, diabetic macular oedema can cause your central vision to become blurred. A healthy macula is essential for good vision.

Download PDF from Moorfields with more information on Diabetic macular oedema here

Central serous retinopathy

Myopic retinal degeneration

Choroidal neovascular membranes (CNVM) associated with pathological myopia (PM) can result in significant vision loss and legal blindness. These membranes usually occur subfoveally and are a major complication of PM, developing in approximately 5-10% of such eyes. PM is the second most common cause of choroidal neovascularization after age-related macular degeneration (AMD), and accounts for nearly 60% of CNVM cases in patients younger than age 50.

Read more about this condition in the BJO article “Myopic choroidal neovascularisation: current concepts and update on clinical management”

Retinal vein occlusions

Occlusion (blockage) of a retinal vein is a common cause of sudden, painless reduction in vision. It occurs when a blockage, often due to a blood clot, forms in a retinal vein.

Cataract

Uveitis

Download PDF document from Moorfields with information on Uveitis here

Rare/Complex Retinal Disorders

There are a large array of individual rare retinal disorders that may be problematic to diagnose such as autoimmune retinopathy (“Diagnostic features of the autoimmune retinopathies” – read more here), Maternally Inherited diabetes and deafness (read more here), Sorsby dystrophy (“Clinical Course and treatment outcomes of Sorsby Fundus dystrophy” – read more here), or to manage such as punctate inner choroidopathy (“Punctate Inner Choroidopathy Clinical Features and Outcomes” – read more here).

If you’d like to know more about the treatments available to you, or think that you may benefit from a consultation, please get in touch here.