How to Recover From Retinal Detachment
Retinal detachment is a very serious medical condition that leads to partial or total loss of vision, depending on the severity and duration of detachment. According to the Mayo Clinic, it is necessary to seek immediate medical attention for retinal detachment in order to initiate treatment before the retina becomes too severely damaged and vision is lost. Only surgical procedures can help someone who has been affected by retinal detachment.
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Instructions
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Recovering from Retinal Detachment
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See an eye doctor, ophthalmologist, as soon as you develop symptoms of retinal detachment. These include eye "floaters," which are irregularly shaped visual disturbances, flashes of light, a darkening in part of the visual field and blurry vision, according to the Mayo Clinic. When your retina has detached, its cells are losing oxygen and will continue to do so, becoming increasingly more damaged until treatment is administered.
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Undergo surgical treatment for retinal tear (partial detachment) or detachment as recommended by your eye doctor. For people who only have a retinal tear, outpatient procedures may be appropriate; these include laser surgery and cryosurgery (surgery using cold temperatures), according to the Mayo Clinic. For people with full retinal detachment, a doctor may recommend cryosurgery as well as one of the following: pneumatic retinopexy (which is also an outpatient procedure), which heals a detachment by using an injected bubble of gas to displace fluid where the retina has detached; scleral buckling, in which silicone is attached to the sclera; and a possible vitrectomy, another operation which makes doing other parts of retinal detachment repair easier by clearing out scar tissue or some accumulated fluid, according to the Mayo Clinic.
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Schedule follow-up visits with your doctor so that the effectiveness of the treatment can be gauged. It can take some time to see progress, and the Mayo Clinic reports that follow-up procedures are sometimes necessary. Ask your eye doctor about glasses for people who have had retinal detachment.
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Seek out resources to help people who have experienced retinal detachment and other forms of vision loss; transportation may be available in your area for those with vision loss. The Mayo Clinic also recommends telling other people about your vision loss so they can help you perform tasks.
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Tips & Warnings
Take steps to make your home life easier. The Mayo Clinic recommends using extra lighting and removing tripping hazards.
Know that full recovery from retinal detachment is not always possible. Surgery may not fully work or the damage may have been so severe or have happened so long ago that surgery could not help, especially when the macula, the center part of the retina, has detached.
