Cataracts

A cataract is clouding of eye lens (between iris and pupil) that results in  blurry vision. With age, it progresses slowly. Cataract is the main cause of blindness in the world. People who are above 35 may develop cataract. The other causes of cataracts include conditions like diabetes, trauma, some medications, improper diet, smoking and exposure of eyes to excessive UV light.

Types of cataracts are:

1) A subcapsular cataract occurs at the back of the lens -people with diabetes and who take high amount of steroid medications develop this type of cataract

2) A nuclear cataract forms deep in the central zone of the lens associated with aging and

3) A cortical cataract is characterized by white, wedge-like opacities that start in the periphery of the lens and work their way to the center in a spoke-like fashion.

Treatment: Routine eye examine helps in determining cataract development. Treatments include eyeglasses, magnifying lenses, or surgery. Surgery is curative as the cloudy lens is removed and replaced with an artificial one.

Reference: http://www.allaboutvision.com/

Image credit: Image by Paul Diaconu from Pixabay  (cc by 0)