A retinal tear is when part of the retina breaks and a hole appears. If left untreated, the function of the retina will decline, leading to retinal detachment and, in the worst case, blindness. This page explains the causes, treatments, and prevention methods of retinal tears.
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Causes, symptoms, types and treatment of retinal tears
What is a retinal break?
A retinal tear is a condition in which part of the retina breaks and a hole appears. When a hole appears, the retina gradually peels off from the tear, causing a decrease in its function as a retina.
Symptoms of a retinal tear include:
- Floaters (floating objects appearing in front of the eyes)
- Photopsia (lightning-like flashes at the edge of your vision)
- low vision
- Visual field defect (loss of vision in part of the field of vision)
In the worst case scenario, it can even lead to blindness.
What causes retinal tears?
There are three causes of retinal tears:
- Aging
- Eyeball smash
- Severe myopia
Any of the above three causes will cause a phenomenon called posterior vitreous detachment. Posterior vitreous detachment is a condition in which the vitreous, which is originally a gel that fills the inside of the eyeball and is in contact with the retina, becomes liquid and loses volume, causing it to detach from the fundus and create a gap between the vitreous and the retina. The vitreous is pulled and torn away from the area that was strongly attached to the vitreous, resulting in a retinal tear.
Retinal Break Treatment Process
If a retinal tear is diagnosed during a medical examination, treatment will be performed using "laser photocoagulation." Retinal tears progress quickly, so it is important to treat them as soon as possible.
How to Treat Retinal Breaks
In the treatment of retinal tears, laser photocoagulation is used to harden the area around the hole with laser light in order to prevent the tear from expanding and becoming a retinal detachment. Retinal tears will detach in about one day, so early detection and treatment are important.
How to prevent retinal tears
Retinal tears are difficult to prevent because they are often caused by aging. However, you can slow down the aging of your eyes by adjusting your lifestyle, and you can also prevent retinal tears by avoiding strong impacts.
Frequently asked questions about the causes, symptoms, types and treatment of retinal tears
What are the early symptoms of a retinal tear?
In the early stages of a retinal break, you may experience symptoms such as floaters (things appearing to be floating in front of your eye) and photopsia (a sudden flash of light, like a bolt of lightning, at the edge of your field of vision).
What is the recurrence rate of retinal tears?
The success rate of surgery for retinal tears is said to be about 90%, so the recurrence rate is about 10%. If recurrence occurs, it usually occurs within 1 to 2 months after treatment. If recurrence occurs, surgery will be required again.
Do retinal tears heal naturally?
Treatment for retinal tears is aimed at preventing the progression to retinal detachment. Once a hole opens, it will not go back to normal on its own, but there are cases where retinal detachment does not occur even if left untreated.
How many days after treatment will it take for a retinal tear to heal?
If you rest after laser treatment, it will heal in about 1 to 2 weeks.
What is the difference between a retinal detachment and a retinal tear?
A retinal tear is when a hole appears in the retina, and a retinal detachment is when the retina separates from the tear and loses its function.
