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 Home > Conditions & Concerns > Specialties  > Ophthalmology > FAQs

FAQs

What about HIV in the tears?

While the HIV virus can be found in tears of people with AIDS, no cases of AIDS have ever been reported from tear contact. Ophthalmologists are especially careful in cleaning their lenses and instruments which come in contact with the tears.

How does AIDS affect the eye?

Highlights

Diabetes and the
    Eyes

All about Contact
    Lenses

Eye safety for
    children

First Aid for Eye
    Injuries

Good Health for
    your eyes

AIDS, HIV and
    the Eyes

	Cotton Wool Spots -- The most common eye problem from AIDS doesn't threaten vision. Your eye has an inner layer called the retina, which sends images to the brain and helps us see. AIDS can cause tiny amounts of bleeding and white spots in the retina. These white spots are called "cotton wool spots" because of the way they look.
	CMV Retinitis -- A serious eye infection of the retina is caused by CMV, the Cytomegalovirus (CMV). About 20-30% of people with AIDS have CMV. Most infections happen when the number of T-cells gets dangerously low, usually under 40. CMV can harm your vision permanently. Call an ophthalmologist right away if you see: Floating spots or "spiderwebs;" Flashing lights; Blind spots or blurred vision.
	Red Eye -- People with AIDS sometimes have red eyes, infections which last for a long time. A disease called shingles can occur more commonly in people with HIV.
	Detached Retina -- Sometimes CMV causes the retina to separate from the back of the eye. A detached retina can cause a serious vision loss. The only way to attach it again is to have an eye operation.
	Kaposi's Sarcoma -- Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) is a kind of tumor that looks like purple-red spots. In the eyes, it can look like a bump on the eyelid or a spot on the white part of the eye. KS can look frightening, but it grows slowly and does not harm the eye.

What is Amblyopia?

Amblyopia is poor vision in an eye that did not develop normal sight during early childhood. It is sometimes called "lazy eye." When one eye develops good vision while the other does not, the eye with poorer vision is called Amblyopic. Usually, only one eye is affected by amblyopia. The condition is common, affecting approximately 2 or 3 out of every 100 people. The best time to correct amblyopia is during infancy or early childhood. Parents must be aware of this potential problem if they want to protect their child's vision.

How does normal vision develop?

Newborn infants are able to see, but as they use their eyes during the first months of life, vision improves. During early childhood years, the visual system changes quickly and vision continues to develop. If a child cannot use his or her eyes normally, vision does not develop properly and may even decrease. After the first nine years of life, the visual system is usually fully developed and usually cannot be changed. The development of equal vision in both eyes is necessary for normal vision. Many occupations are not open to people who have good vision in one eye only.

If the vision in one eye should be lost later in life from an accident or illness, it is essential that the other eye have normal vision. Without normal vision in at least one eye, a person is visually impaired. For all of these reasons, amblyopia must be detected and treated as early as possible.

When should vision be tested?

It is recommended that all children have their vision checked by their pediatrician, family physician or ophthalmologist (medical eye doctor) at or before their fourth birthday. Most physicians test vision as part of a child's medical examination. They may refer a child to an ophthalmologist if there is any sign of an eye condition. New techniques make it possible to test vision in infants and young children. If there is a family history of misaligned eyes, childhood cataracts or a serious eye disease, an ophthalmologist can check vision even earlier than age three.

What causes Amblyopia?

Amblyopia is caused by any condition that affects normal use of the eyes and visual development. In many cases, the conditions associated with amblyopia may be inherited. Children in a family with a history of amblyopia or misaligned eyes should be checked by an ophthalmologist early in life. Amblyopia has three major causes:

• Strabismus (misaligned eyes). Amblyopia occurs most commonly with misaligned or crossed eyes. The crossed eye "turns off" to avoid double vision and the child uses only the better eye.

• Unequal focus (refractive error). Refractive errors are eye conditions that are corrected by wearing glasses. Amblyopia occurs when one eye is out of focus because it is more nearsighted, farsighted or astigmatic than the other. The unfocused (blurred) eye "turns off" and becomes amblyopic. The eyes can look normal but one eye has poor vision. This is the most difficult type of amblyopia to detect and requires careful measurement of vision.

• Cloudiness in the normally clear eye tissues. An eye disease such as a cataract (a clouding of the eye's natural lens) may lead to amblyopia. Any factor that prevents a clear image from being focused inside the eye can lead to the development of amblyopia in a child. This is often the most severe form of amblyopia.

How is amblyopia diagnosed?

It is not easy to recognize amblyopia. A child may not be aware of having one strong eye and one weak eye. Unless the child has a misaligned eye, there is often no way for parents to tell that something is wrong. Amblyopia is detected by finding a difference in vision between the two eyes. Since it is difficult to measure vision in young children, your ophthalmologist often estimates visual acuity by viewing how well a baby follows objects with one eye when the other eye is covered. If one eye is amblyopic and the good eye is covered, the baby may attempt to look around the patch, try to pull it off or cry.

Poor vision in one eye does not always mean that a child has amblyopia. Vision can often be improved by prescribing glasses for a child. Your ophthalmologist will also carefully examine the interior of the eye to see if other eye diseases may be causing decreased vision. These diseases include:

• Cataracts;

• Inflammations;

• Tumors;

• Other disorders of the inner eye.

How is amblyopia treated?

To correct amblyopia, a child must be made to use the weak eye. This is usually done by patching or covering the strong eye, often for weeks or months. Even after vision has been restored in the weak eye, part-time patching may be required over a period of years to maintain the improvement. Glasses may be prescribed to correct errors in focusing. If glasses alone do not improve vision, then patching is necessary. Occasionally, amblyopia is treated by blurring the vision in the good eye with special eye drops or lenses to force the child to use the amblyopic eye.

What are the safety measures for eye care at home?

To provide the safety:

• Select games and toys that are appropriate for your child's age and responsibility level.

• Provide adequate supervision and instruction when your children are handling potentially dangerous items, such as pencils, scissors and pen knives. Be aware that even common household items such as paper clips, elastic cords, wire coat hangers, rubber bands can cause serious eye injury.

• Avoid projectile toys such as darts and bows and arrows. They are extremely dangerous.

• Keep all chemicals and sprays out of reach of small children.

• Do not allow children to ignite fireworks or stand near others who are doing so. All fireworks are potentially dangerous for children of any age.

• Demonstrate the use of protective eyewear to children by always wearing protective eyewear yourself while using power tools, hammering on metal.

What is Low vision?

If ordinary eyeglasses, contact lenses or intraocular lens implants don't give you clear vision, you are said to have low vision. Don't confuse this condition with blindness. People with low vision still have useful vision that can often be improved with visual devices. Whether your visual impairment is mild or severe, low vision generally means that your vision does not meet your needs. Using visual devices to improve your vision usually begins after your ophthalmologist has completed medical or surgical treatment or determined that such treatments will not improve your vision.

What causes Low vision?

Though most often experienced by the elderly, people of all ages may be affected. Low vision can occur from birth defects, inherited diseases, injuries, diabetes, glaucoma, cataract and aging. The most common cause is macular degeneration, a disease of the retina, the inner layer of the eye that senses light and allows you to see. Macular degeneration causes damage to central vision. It does not cause total blindness, because side (peripheral) vision is not affected.

Are there different types of low vision?

Yes. Although reduced central or reading vision is most common, low vision may also result from decreased side (peripheral) vision, or a loss of color vision. Or, your eye might lose the ability to adjust to light, contrast or glare. Different types of low vision may require different kinds of assistance. For example, people born with low vision have different needs from those who develop low vision later in life.

Is lighting important for people with low vision?

Correct lighting is as important as a low vision device. With no eye disorder, a 60-year-old person may need twice the illumination he or she needed at 20 to comfortably perform the same task.

Some lighting tips:

• Place the light source close to your reading material for greatest visibility;

• High intensity lights with adjustable arms work well for this purpose;

• Absorptive lenses are useful in controlling glare.

What is Strabismus?

Strabismus is a visual defect in which the eyes are misaligned and point in different directions. One eye may look straight ahead, while the other eye turns inward, outward, upward or downward.  The turned eye may straighten at times and the straight eye may turn.

Strabismus is a common condition among children. It can also occur later in life. It occurs equally in males and females. Strabismus may run in families. However, many people with strabismus have no relatives with the problem.

What causes strabismus?

The exact cause of strabismus is not fully understood. Six eye muscles, controlling eye movement, are attached to the outside of each eye. In each eye, two muscles move the eye right or left. The other four muscles move it up or down and at an angle. To line up and focus both eyes on a single target, all of the muscles in each eye must be balanced and working together. In order for the eyes to move together, the muscles in both eyes must be coordinated. The brain controls the eye muscles. Strabismus is especially common among children with disorders that affect the brain, such as:

	Cerebral palsy
	Down syndrome
	Hydrocephalus
	Brain tumors

A cataract or eye injury that affects vision can also cause strabismus.