Eye Disease Diagnosis & Management in Mississauga, ON

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Proactive Disease Prevention

The key to healthy eyes lies in annual eye exams. During your exam, your optometrist assesses your prescription and looks for signs of eye disease. Many eye diseases show little or no symptoms until vision loss has already begun to occur, so it is essential that you get your eye health checked regularly.

As we age, our likelihood of developing eye problems such as cataracts, glaucoma, and macular degeneration increases.

Adult & Senior Eye Exams

Children’s Eye Exams

Diabetic Eye Exams

Eye Care Emergencies

Glaucoma Management

There is currently no cure for glaucoma, and no way to reverse the damage to the optic nerve that has already been done. However, glaucoma can be managed using special eye drops or laser trabeculoplasty, a type of surgery to slow or halt progression.

During your comprehensive eye exam, the experts at Queensway Optometric Centre in Mississauga will use a variety of tests to look for signs of glaucoma, including tonometry, the assessment of the intraocular pressure (or fluid pressure) inside your eye.

Defining Glaucoma

While there are many types of glaucoma, most forms generally occur when excess fluid (called aqueous humour) builds up in your eye. This build-up increases the internal pressure of your eye and potentially damages your optic nerve, resulting in tunnel vision.

If glaucoma is not diagnosed and treated, it will continue to reduce your field of vision until you become blind.

Open-Angle Glaucoma

Open-angle glaucoma is the most common type of glaucoma. It occurs when the aqueous humour is unable to drain properly because of a blockage in the angle between the iris and the cornea. There are treatments available to prevent or halt optic nerve damage and sight loss, but early intervention is key.

Normal-Tension Glaucoma

Normal-tension glaucoma occurs when the eye’s drainage system is fully functional and the pressure in the eye is normal, but the optic nerve still becomes damaged. Although there are treatments available to mitigate or prevent optic nerve damage and vision loss, early intervention is vital.

Acute Angle-Closure Glaucoma

Acute angle-closure glaucoma is rare and occurs when the angle between the iris and the cornea is too shallow. If the iris is pushed too far forward, the gap between the iris and the cornea becomes too narrow, preventing the aqueous humour from draining.

This type of glaucoma typically occurs without warning, and symptoms can include:

Sudden blurring of vision
Eye pain
Intense headache
Nausea
Vomiting

Acute angle-closure glaucoma is a serious ocular emergency. If you experience the symptoms listed, you should seek medical attention immediately. Call our office in Mississauga and request an emergency appointment or proceed to the nearest emergency room.

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Cataracts

Just as a paper yellows over time, so do the lenses in our eyes. Age and sun exposure can cause cataracts, and as they progress, our vision becomes blurry, colours lose their brightness, and the world appears dimmer.

Cataracts Risk Factors

Though we will all eventually develop cataracts as we age, some factors increase the likelihood of developing cataracts at a younger age:

Diabetes
Smoking
Obesity
Undergoing eye surgery
Sustaining an eye injury
Prolonged UV exposure
High blood pressure
Genetic factors

By making a few simple lifestyle changes, you can reduce your likelihood of developing cataracts at a young age. Wearing UV protective sunglasses, not smoking, and eating a balanced and nutritious diet may help to hold off cataract development.

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Age-Related Macular Degeneration

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the leading cause of blindness in Canada and is a condition that affects the macula, the portion of your retina that contributes to your central vision. You are more likely vulnerable to macular degeneration if you have a high amount of drusen. When these small deposits (drusen) form in the blood vessels of the macula they can indicate early stages of AMD.

There is currently no treatment to reverse the effects of macular degeneration. Depending on how advanced the disease is, there are various lifestyle changes and treatment options that may slow the progression of the disease.

One way to reduce your likelihood of vision loss as a result of macular degeneration is to schedule regular eye exams. Early detection of macular degeneration is critical, since by the time you begin to experience symptoms, you may already be at risk for permanent vision loss.

Dry Macular Degeneration (DMD)

In complement to medical treatments for dry macular degeneration, your optometrist may recommend some lifestyle changes to help slow its progression. Quitting smoking, losing weight, or eating more of certain foods to ensure you get specific nutrients can help slow the progression of dry macular degeneration.

Wet Macular Degeneration

Wet Macular Degeneration, also called neovascular macular degeneration, occurs when abnormal blood vessels start to grow beneath your macula. There are several treatments available for wet macular degeneration, including:

Laser surgery to target and destroy irregular blood vessels
Eye injections to inhibit new irregular blood vessel growth

These treatments can sometimes prevent further vision loss from occurring.

Take Your Vitamins

Your optometrist may also recommend you begin taking certain vitamins. Recent studies have shown that several vitamins and minerals can help delay the progression of macular degeneration. These include: