Night blindness develops. Traditional methods of treatment. Diet and vitamins to prevent night blindness

The disease night blindness is associated with worsening or complete absence visibility at dusk, in low light conditions, also against this background, a person’s orientation in the dark is disturbed. The fact is that at low levels of illumination, the receptors of the retinal rods are responsible for vision, and under the influence of light their pigment (rhodopsin) disintegrates.

What is night blindness

The regeneration process lasts some time with the obligatory participation of vitamin A. Based on this, we can conclude that night blindness develops due to structural changes in rods or due to rhodopsin deficiency.

The term “hemerolopia” is derived from the Greek words “hemer”, “ala” and “op”, which translated as “day”, “blind”, “sight”, is used in the countries of the post-Soviet space. The term “nyctalopia” also comes from three Greek words “nyct”, “ala” and “op”, translated as “night”, “blind” and “sight”, used in England and Great Britain.

There are different types of hemeralopia: congenital, essential and symptomatic.

Congenital

It is hereditary and begins to appear in childhood and adolescence. During this period, children experience a progressive decrease in visibility at dusk and a lack of adaptation in the dark.

Essential

This form of night blindness is explained by insufficient intake of vitamin A into the body or impaired metabolism. The cause of this condition may be malnutrition during fasting, liver disease, alcohol abuse, or malaria. In such cases, the essential type of night blindness is temporary.

Symptomatic

Appears when:

  • retinal dystrophy;
  • inflammatory processes of the retina, as well as the membrane of the blood vessels of the eye,
  • glaucoma;
  • atrophy optic nerve;
  • complicated myopia and other visual abnormalities.

In addition to night blindness, in these cases other symptoms of a specific disease appear.

There is also the concept of false night blindness, which is characterized by a slight deviation in vision in low light conditions against the background of banal eye fatigue. This type of hemeralopia is not subject to therapeutic intervention and goes away in the patient after proper rest.

Causes of the disease

There are no clear reasons that would indicate the development of hemeralopia, but one factor - lack of vitamin A - is a consequence of severe vision loss in twilight and darkness. Let's consider in what situations the disease night blindness occurs and what factors can provoke it:

  • genetic predisposition;
  • anemia;
  • severe exhaustion of the body;
  • liver diseases;
  • retinal diseases (pigmentary degeneration, detachment, inflammation, etc.);
  • the use of drugs that are antagonists of vitamin A (for example, quinine);
  • poor nutrition (this primarily applies to vegetarians);
  • inflammation of the optic nerve;
  • myopia (nearsightedness);
  • physiological deficiency of vitamin A in the body;
  • transferred infectious diseases, in particular, chicken pox, rubella, measles, herpes;
  • menopause period;
  • previous traumatic brain injury;
  • insufficiently lit work area;
  • frequent and prolonged exposure to dazzlingly bright light, in the bright sun;
  • Availability organic diseases eye (myopia, glaucoma, retinal pigment pathologies, etc.);
  • age over 40 years (during this period, the slow progression of all processes in the body, including the nutrition of the retina, begins).

Diagnostics

To establish a diagnosis of hemeralopia, it is necessary to conduct a number of examinations, which include:

  • identification of visual acuity using Sivtsev tables (so-called visometry);
  • use of Orlova tables (for children preschool age who cannot read and do not know letters);
  • perimetry - a study that determines visual fields;
  • fundus ophthalmoscopy;
  • tonometry - determination of intraocular pressure indicators;
  • eye biomicroscopy;
  • if necessary - refractometry, electroretinography and ultrasound scanning retina of the eyes.

The doctor also evaluates the condition of the optic nerve head, blood vessels, retina.

Treatment and prognosis

Treatment of night blindness is prescribed depending on the etiology and type. For example, with essential hemeralopia, the basis of treatment is a special diet, when a balanced and high-calorie diet is developed for the patient. The lack of vitamins is compensated by the following products included in the diet:

  • seafood - cod liver, squid, seaweed, shrimps;
  • dairy products - cheese, cottage cheese, sour cream;
  • eggs;
  • berries and fruits - blackcurrant, blackberry, peach, blueberry, cherry, gooseberry, rowan;
  • vegetables and green crops - carrots, lettuce, spinach, tomatoes, green peas.

During treatment congenital form For hemeralopia, this diet therapy can also be used, but only a temporary and insignificant improvement in the condition occurs. But the narrowing of the visual field with insufficient lighting remains.

In the treatment of night blindness, the leading place is to replenish the required amount of vitamin A. Treatment of night blindness in the symptomatic form is necessary depending on the severity of the underlying disease in the patient. For example, surgical correction of myopia and treatment of glaucoma will return the patient to normal vision and he will have orientation in the dark.

Eye drops for hemeralopia

To support reduced vision, it is recommended to use Riboflavin drops (vitamin B2). This multicomponent complex will enrich the tissues of the organs of vision with oxygen and facilitate conductivity nerve impulses in the retina of the eye. The complex is prescribed for keratitis, iriditis, night blindness and conjunctivitis.

Place one drop in each eye 2 times a day. Duration of treatment is from 5 to 15 days. The drug is contraindicated for patients who are intolerant to the components of Riboflavin.

Traditional treatment

Before you start taking remedies prepared according to folk recipes, you need to consult an ophthalmologist, after which you can use the following recipes:

  • accept as normal daily use small quantity fish oil;
  • drink one grain of mustard with plenty of water, the next day 2 grains, etc., increase the amount to 20, and then in the reverse order;
  • use 1 tbsp. a spoonful of rosehip syrup daily;
  • prepare a decoction of millet, for which take 1 glass of millet, pour 2 liters of water over it and cook until tender, take 2-3 tablespoons of the pulp every day until visible improvements occur.

Prevention of night blindness

Night blindness is a disease that can be prevented, if it is not hereditary, by performing a number of the following preventive measures:

  • stick to proper nutrition by eating foods with vitamins, especially A and B2;
  • avoid the glare of oncoming headlights;
  • use welding machine only in a special mask;
  • Avoid exposure to direct sunlight;
  • workplace should be well lit;
  • do not look at the bright snow;
  • avoid visiting the solarium;
  • wear Sunglasses as needed;
  • take place regularly preventive examinations and promptly treat concomitant diseases.

To summarize the above, it should be noted that night blindness is an eye disease that, when correct behavior the patient is completely cured.


Essential hemeralopia (night blindness) is a twilight vision disorder resulting from diseases of the retina and optic nerve. The main cause of the disease is considered to be vitamin deficiency or hypovitaminosis A, B2, PP. Hemeralopia can be congenital, which cannot be treated, or acquired. It can also develop after measles or chickenpox in childhood. Common cause diseases include malnutrition and anemia, liver disease, exposure to alcohol, bright light. Treatment is symptomatic.

Instructions

If difficulties arise in spatial orientation, impaired adaptation to darkness, narrowing of the field

consult an ophthalmologist. As a rule, preparations of animal origin containing vitamins A, B2, and PP are prescribed.

To treat hemeralopia, use a diet based on the consumption of foods containing essential vitamins. Eating beef is especially beneficial.

Carrots with

Cream or sour cream. It is useful to include daily diet two or three products from the following. These are tomatoes, spinach, green onions, black currants, apricots, gooseberries, cod liver, dairy products, egg yolk, caviar, millet.

Use the recipes traditional medicine, which contribute to the improvement of visual

and retina

Prepare the following herbal collection. Take 2 parts each of leaves and roots of dandelion, cordate linden flowers, blueberry leaves, one part each of leaves

sea ​​buckthorn

and buckwheat

sowing

After grinding, mix the ingredients.

Brew 3 tablespoons of the collection with 750 ml of boiling water. After soaking in a water bath for 15 minutes, leave for half an hour. Strain and drink 200 ml three times a day after meals.

Use for treatment stinging nettle. It is recommended to consume soup daily in the spring.

tops

young plants. During the rest of the year, take nettle infusion. Brew 2 tablespoons of crushed nettle leaves with a glass of boiling water.

After leaving for an hour, strain. Take 1/3 cup three times a day half an hour before meals.

Also use grass - wildflower (chicken

). Brew 5 grams of dry herb with 200 ml of boiling water and leave for 10 minutes, strain. Drink 15 ml three times a day after meals.

Accept fish fat 2 tablespoons three times a day. Course – 3-4

note

Essential hemeralopia is treatable and must be treated. According to statistics, the number of accidents involving drivers suffering from this disease is almost the same as those involving drunken motorists.

Helpful advice

Also include freshly prepared food in your diet. grape juice, carrot juice, juice from blueberries, sea buckthorn, and sea buckthorn oil.

How to treat night blindness

The congenital type of hemeralopia is practically untreatable, but the others can be successfully combated. For example, if night blindness is the result of some other eye disease, then the main treatment method here will be therapy for the underlying disease. Sometimes it may be necessary surgical intervention (laser correction vision).

The essential type of disease is treated mainly with special diet. The patient should add foods with high content vitamin A, and also adhere to healthy routine day.

Diet for night blindness plays a very important role in the treatment of this disease. Be sure to include the following foods in your diet:

  1. Carrot.
  2. Egg yolk.
  3. Tomatoes.
  4. Millet.
  5. Berries.
  6. Butter.
  7. Spinach.
  8. Beef liver or cod liver.

Also, do not forget about vegetables and fruits: peaches, pumpkin juice, green peas, apricots, parsley. To improve the absorption of vitamin A, you need to add foods with vitamin E to your diet: nuts, seeds, broccoli, potatoes.

Eye drops for night blindness

Riboflavin. This is a multicomponent vitamin preparation that contains riboflavin (that is, vitamin B2). This tool considered only preventive, it helps to enrich tissues required quantity oxygen, facilitate the conduction of nerve impulses, especially in the retina. Indicated for night blindness, keratitis, conjunctivitis, iriditis.

Typically, the dosage of riboflavin is as follows: twice a day, the patient instills one drop of the drug into each eye. The duration of therapy can only be prescribed by a doctor.

The product is contraindicated in case of individual intolerance to its components. Among side effects can be distinguished: short-term loss visual acuity, allergies.

Vitamins

Typically, treatment for night blindness is based on increasing intake of human body vitamin A. Usually preparations with this vitamin are prescribed in the following dosage: adults - up to 100 thousand IU of the vitamin per day, children - up to 5 thousand IU of the vitamin per day. You should also simultaneously prescribe medications with vitamins B2 and PP.

Traditional treatment

  1. Try to drink at least a little fish oil three times a day.
  2. Try to add the following foods to your daily diet: carrots, peas, green onions, spinach, black currants, beans, parsley, gooseberries, sea buckthorn.
  3. Drink one mustard seed daily with plenty of water. Gradually increase the dose of grains (up to 20 pieces), and then start decreasing again.

Please note that before using traditional methods of treating night blindness, you must consult your doctor.

Herbal treatment

  1. Infusion of stinking cornflower herb. Take 10 g of raw material, pour one glass of water, leave for 15 minutes, then strain. Take one tablespoon per day (3-4 times) before meals.
  2. Decoction of seed millet. Take one cup of millet, pour two liters of water into an enamel pan, cook until the grain is completely boiled. Use until vision improves.
  3. Decoction of medicinal herbs. Take equal shares of primrose leaves, lingonberries, blackberries, viburnum, forest raspberries, lemon balm and snake knotweed rhizomes (one teaspoon each). Brew the resulting mixture in 0.35 liters of boiling water. Leave for one hour. Take half a glass three times a day.

Surgical treatment

If hemeralopia was caused by myopia, glaucoma, cataracts, then, in some cases, it is difficult to do without surgical treatment. Sometimes refractive surgery is necessary, which is based on the correction of corneal and retinal defects. If night blindness was caused by pigmentary dystrophy, then in this case a transplantation is necessary. Glaucoma or cataracts are treated with lens replacement (laser eye surgery), which, of course, also helps with night blindness.

Night blindness or hemelaropia is a disease with impaired vision in twilight and twilight. That's why this disease also called twilight and night blindness. Is this disease dangerous? What causes it to appear? How does it manifest and how to treat it? Read about this in our article.

Night blindness disease

The disease night blindness develops in humans against the background of a deficiency of vitamin A (retinol), “responsible” for vision. It is found in visual purple, a light-sensitive substance in the human retina. When there is enough vitamin A, then a person sees well. If night blindness develops, vitamin A is in short supply, and it urgently needs to be replenished in order to avoid complete loss of vision. Acquired night blindness in humans is called functional. Functional hemelaropia can develop in the following conditions:

  • a person suffers from diseases of the retina (for example, retinal detachment, discoloration or inflammatory processes),
  • macular degenerative processes develop,
  • a person suffers from myopia, cataracts, glaucoma, traumatic brain injuries and other head injuries.

In addition, an improperly lit workplace, working at a computer, reading under a table lamp, as well as a lack of eye protection from ultraviolet radiation (bright sun at sea or in the mountains) negatively affect vision. People over 40 years of age can also become potential victims of night blindness, since, starting from this age, the metabolic rate in the body decreases, which impairs the nutrition of the retina. This leads to a deterioration in the ability to see in semi-darkness and darkness. Functional hemelaropia is not dangerous, and in most cases it can be successfully treated.

But there is another type of this disease, which is quite dangerous because it develops at the genetic level and cannot be treated. The development of this type of night blindness is determined by the structure of the retina human eye. Normally, the human retina contains special light-sensitive cells - rods and cones. They are present in the retina in a ratio of 18:1. With a decrease in the number of rods in the retina, a person begins to see worse in twilight and darkness, i.e. night blindness develops. And this disease is called so because the retina of a chicken contains only cones, so chickens can distinguish colors well, but see practically nothing in the dark.

Symptoms of night blindness

Symptoms of night blindness do not appear in humans in normal lighting conditions. He can fully perform all tasks: read, write, work on a computer, etc. The disease night blindness makes itself felt only at dusk. A person sees objects blurry, the image loses clarity, sometimes the perception of colors is disrupted, this is especially noticeable on blue objects. The behavior of a person suffering from night blindness changes dramatically in conditions of lack of light: coordination of movements is impaired, he becomes more careful.

Night blindness, the symptoms of which we have just described, appears in conditions of vitamin A deficiency in the human body. Night blindness is often accompanied by conjunctivitis, dry skin and mucous membranes. Another symptom of night blindness is keratinization of skin areas on the abdomen and buttocks, as well as brittleness and hair loss, and the appearance of ulcers on the cornea of ​​the eyes. This is especially true for children.

If you notice one or more symptoms of night blindness, contact an ophthalmologist who, using special tests, will determine your field of vision, the reaction of the pupils of your eyes to light, as well as the condition of the eye muscles and the retinal layer. Based on these studies, the doctor will conclude whether the person suffers from hemelaropia or not and prescribe the appropriate treatment.

Treatment of night blindness

Treatment of night blindness, if it is congenital, is, unfortunately, impossible. Therefore further we'll talk about how to recover from functional hemelaropia, i.e. acquired night blindness. If you have been diagnosed with night blindness, treatment will depend on the cause. In order to get rid of night blindness, you need to cure the disease that caused it.

Most often, night blindness is caused by a lack of retinol; accordingly, vitamins for night blindness will be prescribed A and B2, which promote its best absorption. In severe cases, when a severe lack of vitamins is detected, it is replenished with the help of vitamin complexes. If the situation is not critical, then the patient should follow a diet, rich in food, which is a source of vitamin A. These are carrots, cabbage, citrus fruits, vegetables and fruit juices, cheese, milk and dairy products, eggs, cod liver, as well as turkey and beef liver.

It should be noted that night blindness is not a harmless disease. It's fraught general deterioration vision or his total loss. Please note that if you notice a deterioration in vision in only one eye, while the other sees normally in the dark, then this is not night blindness, but some other disease of the visual organs. In this case, you should immediately consult a doctor in order to diagnose and treat the disease in a timely manner.

Besides balanced nutrition Prevention of night blindness includes protecting your eyes from the bright sun at sea and in the mountains by wearing sunglasses and special mountain glasses, proper lighting of the workplace, as well as taking good care of your health in general.

Essential hemeralopia is a disease that can affect every person. Vision is one of those capabilities of our body that allows us to lead a fulfilling lifestyle. Therefore, it is very important to keep your eyes healthy. Find out how to treat night blindness at home using folk remedies right now! But first, do not forget to read why it occurs and how it manifests itself.

Causes and symptoms

The disease is a twilight vision disorder that occurs due to disease of the optic nerve or retina of the eye. In other words, a person does not distinguish or poorly distinguishes objects in the dark. The most common causes of night blindness are due to a lack of vitamins A, B2, and PP in the body. The disease can also be congenital and cannot be treated. Acquired night blindness, on the contrary, is eliminated using certain methods. The disease itself can appear after a person has been ill chicken pox or measles. Anemia, liver disease, malnutrition, exposure to bright light and alcohol - these and other factors can also lead to loss of twilight vision.

Folk remedies for treatment

Tincture recipes


Brew 2 tablespoons of stinging nettle with a glass of boiling water and leave for 50-60 minutes. Strain the infusion and take 1/3 cup 3 times a day before meals. It is also useful to prepare soup with the addition of young nettle tops.

A recipe for a tincture to treat this type of blindness at home.

Ingredients:

  • 2 parts of dandelion officinalis roots and leaves,
  • 2 parts of linden flowers,
  • 2 parts blueberry leaves,
  • 1 part sea buckthorn leaves,
  • 1 part buckwheat leaves.

For cooking folk recipe tinctures for night blindness Pour 3 tablespoons of the mixture with 750 grams of boiling water. We stand for 15 minutes in a water bath, and then leave for another 30 minutes. Medicine you need to take 200 milliliters 3 times a day after meals.

Folk remedy treatment from Vanga. If a person's blindness occurs at dusk and is called chicken blindness, cook beef or lamb liver. When the pan with only a hundred cooked product is removed from the heat, you need to lean over it and cover your head with a towel so that the steam remains inside and hits only the person’s face. Such warming helps to get rid of the disease - even the famous soothsayer Vanga recommended this recipe. In addition, for the treatment of blindness at home, the patient simple conditions need to eat boiled liver 10-14 days. The "chicken disease" will recede and will not bother you.

Home therapy for night blindness

Be sure to contact an ophthalmologist who will conduct an examination and draw up individual program treatment of blindness or as it is called twilight disease with folk natural and by safe means. Usually in these cases, patients are prescribed vitamins A, B2, PP.

Eat for therapy natural remedies- carrots with butter, beef liver, cream, tomatoes, black currants, blueberries, apricots, cod liver, egg yolk, millet, dairy products.


Take fish oil at a rate of 2-5 milligrams for 1 day. Course duration home treatment by simple means is 3-4 weeks. Use traditional medicine recipes - our ancestors knew exactly how to treat night blindness with conventional means.

We sincerely believe that these recipes alternative medicine will help you and your loved ones regain their sight and help you at home in the treatment of blindness in particular. Live life to the fullest and be healthy!

Visual acuity depends on many factors, on heredity, on the type of activity and on exposure to a variety of aggressive substances. In addition, eye health is largely determined by a person’s lifestyle: the presence or absence bad habits, as well as diet. After all, insufficient intake of certain useful substances(vitamins, minerals, fats and amino acids) can contribute to the development of a variety of disorders, including in work visual apparatus. Just such problems include night blindness, the symptoms of which a person has, as well as what kind of disease it is in general - we will look at this page www.site, we will name the reasons for the appearance of such a disease, and also answer the question of how to treat such a pathological condition.

Night blindness is a disease that is usually classified by ophthalmologists as hemeralopia. With such a violation, a person feels a sharp decline visual acuity when in low light conditions (at dusk, etc.).

About how night blindness manifests itself, what reasons lead to it

Hemeralopia can be congenital, symptomatic or essential. Essential night blindness is considered the most common. This disease can occur in patients whose diet leaves much to be desired, which causes vitamin deficiency. In this case, the main reason why night blindness occurs is a lack of vitamin A.

However, at the same time, night blindness can develop against the background of anemia, liver disease, or serious depletion of the body. In some cases, this pathological condition can be provoked by the consumption of vitamin A antagonist drugs, including quinine.

The congenital form of night blindness makes itself felt in early childhood. This disease is explained by the action of genetic factors.

A symptomatic type of hemeralopia manifests itself in certain organic eye diseases, including high-grade glaucoma or retinal pigment pathologies. At risk for the development of this pathology are patients whose age has reached forty years. At this stage of life, all processes that occur in the body (including the nutrition of the retina) slow down, which becomes the cause of the development of the disease “night blindness”.

However, regardless of the cause of hemeralopia, visual impairment is provoked by only one problem - a failure in the formation of the rhodopsin pigment, which is located inside the optic rods of the retina.

Symptoms of night blindness in humans

Night blindness in humans, accompanied by a deficiency of vitamin A, leads to the patient's visual acuity gradually decreasing in poor lighting. Also, many patients note disturbances in color perception, which are expressed in the inability to correctly perceive Blue colour. Quite often, with hemeralopia, a person, being in the twilight, sees red colors as darker, and blue as lighter.

To read or write, the patient needs additional lighting. Pathological processes also lead to a narrowing of visual fields, as a result of which a person begins to see the world as if through a tube or window.

Night blindness can also make itself felt by the presence of spots in the field of vision; they appear when the patient moves from a dark room to a brighter one.

A lack of vitamin A in the body also leads to the appearance of other symptoms in the patient, including persistent conjunctivitis, dry skin and mucous membranes. The disease leads to keratinization of skin areas on the abdomen and buttocks. A lack of vitamin A also makes itself felt by the appearance of ulcers on the cornea of ​​the eyes, hair loss and brittleness.

About how night blindness is corrected, how to treat it in different forms

Therapy for hemeralopia may differ depending on what exactly caused the development of this pathological condition. So if night blindness develops due to a lack of vitamin A, then the patient must be given the right dietary food.

To eliminate vitamin A deficiency, the patient must include cod liver in his diet, butter, milk, eggs, and cheese. In addition, you should definitely eat fruits and berries, such as blackberries, blackcurrants, blueberries, peaches, gooseberries, apricots, cherries and rowan berries. The menu should also include vegetables and herbs, including carrots and spinach, tomatoes and salads, as well as green peas.

Doctors advise many patients to take vitamin A in the form medicines.

For achievement positive effect the body of a sick adult should receive approximately 50,000-100,000 IU of vitamin A per day, children daily dose should be approximately 1000-5000 IU. In parallel, riboflavin (vitamin B2) can also be used in the amount of 0.02 g per day.

If a patient is diagnosed with congenital hemeralopia, he also needs dietary nutrition. However, the prognosis for the course of such a disease is not very favorable. After all, saturating the diet with vitamins in this case has virtually no effect on the quality of visual acuity. And regardless of the diet, the patient’s fields of vision are also significantly narrowed.

The prognosis for correcting night blindness in the symptomatic version of this disease depends on how the underlying disease proceeds. Successful elimination the root cause of the development of hemeralopia helps to restore high-quality vision and spatial orientation in the dark.

If you suspect the development of the disease “night blindness,” you need to seek doctor’s help as soon as possible.

Ekaterina, www.site

P.S. The text uses some forms characteristic of oral speech.

11.09.2014 | Viewed by: 5,375 people.

Hemeralopia, or, colloquially, night blindness, is an adaptation disorder visual function in low light conditions.

A person with night blindness develops a condition where he can see virtually nothing at night or in the twilight. During the daytime, his visual acuity remains quite normal.

A reasonable question arises: how are chickens related to human disease? The explanation is simple: the capabilities of any organ of vision in terms of adapting to changing lighting conditions in a room depend on the functioning of the rods and cones - the components of the retina that have light sensitivity.

Cones are designed to provide good vision during the day, and sticks at night, which is achieved by them due to increased photosensitivity.

Chickens have almost no rods in the retina of their eyes, and therefore at dusk these animals see practically nothing. This is why poor night vision in some people is called night blindness.

Why does night blindness occur?

The disease occurs when there is an imbalance in the ratio between the number of rods and cones in the organs of vision. In addition, night blindness can develop when pathological decrease number of rods, changes in their structure with the emergence of dysfunction.

Also, the cause of hemeralopia is a lack or violation metabolic processes visual pigment - rhodopsin. It is contained precisely in the sticks.

Night blindness is classified into 3 types - congenital, essential, symptomatic. The most common is essential hemeralopia. It occurs due to malnutrition, deficiency of vitamins and nutrients, especially with a lack of vitamin A.

Also, this type of night blindness can be caused by anemia, liver pathologies, poisoning by toxic poisons, and exhaustion of the body.

Symptomatic night blindness is the result of certain ophthalmological diseases, including high myopia, glaucoma, and retinal disorders.

Congenital night blindness is caused by hereditary diseases and genomic abnormalities, for example, Usher syndrome, retinitis pigmentosa.

Clinical picture of night blindness

The main symptom of the disease is strong fall vision in low light. Visual acuity decreases, all objects look blurry, fields of view are limited, and color perception also suffers. In most cases, patients complain of incorrect perception of shades of blue.

Some patients lose color vision altogether at dusk. Sometimes they flash before your eyes dark spots, for example, when suddenly entering darkness from a lit room.

Treatment of night blindness

Therapy of the disease is directly related to the elimination or correction of the cause that caused night blindness. Essential night blindness is the easiest to treat adequate measures treatment.

Since its cause is carotene deficiency (most often), sometimes to return normal vision A simple course of vitamin preparations is enough for the patient.

If a lack of vitamin A is a consequence of treatment with any drugs that inhibit it (quinine and others), then such therapy is immediately canceled and a course of vitamins is taken.

If night blindness is caused by liver pathologies, acute or prolonged infections, all efforts should be directed to eliminating these diseases.

If night blindness develops, you should change your diet.

Vegetables and other foods must be included in the diet. vitamin products- cabbage, carrots, fish, liver, seafood, fruit juices, citrus fruits, etc.

Symptomatic night blindness that is caused by other ophthalmic problems should be corrected by treating the underlying pathology. So, for myopia, glasses are selected, contact lenses, and also prescribe a special medication course.

For cataracts and glaucoma it is often required surgery. No therapeutic measures have yet been developed against congenital night blindness.

Night blindness is a popular designation for vision pathology, which in medicine is called hemeralopia or nyctalopia. The disease manifests itself in a significant deterioration in visual perception in low light conditions environment. At the same time, a person’s coordination is impaired, visual fields are narrowed, and there is an incorrect perception of things in blue and yellow shades.

Etiology

Night blindness has specific reasons manifestations. Doctors noted that the disease may have a congenital etiology, the causes of which have not been precisely determined. The main provoking factor is associated with a lack of vitamin A in the body.

Nyctalopia, another one medical term night blindness, also acts as a symptom various pathologies, which are based on damage retina:

  • high degree;
  • pigmented;
  • siderosis.

With a lack of vitamins A, PP, B2, a person’s visual perception. Certain ailments and indicators can provoke this condition:

  • unbalanced diet;
  • starvation;
  • or ;
  • liver diseases;
  • gastrointestinal tract damage;
  • alcoholism;
  • exhaustion of the body;
  • certain medications;
  • prolonged exposure to bright light.

Classification

Based on the etiology of the disease, clinicians have determined that night blindness, as a disease, can manifest itself in three forms:

  • congenital - develops according to hereditary factor V childhood;
  • essential - night blindness develops from a lack of vitamins and microelements, when the structure of the retina of the eye is disrupted;
  • symptomatic - progresses from concomitant ailments that affect the retina or optic nerve.

Also in medicine, there is another type of disease called false hemeralopia. It manifests itself in a slight impairment of visual function in the dark. The disease is provoked by severe eye fatigue. This type of disease does not require medication assistance, which is why the patient needs to rest fully.

Symptoms

As a rule, night blindness occurs in people from vitamin deficiency. Therefore, it will not be difficult for the patient to cope with such an illness. In order to recognize the disease in time, a person needs to monitor all changes in vision, especially during twilight.

Doctors have identified the main symptoms of a person suffering from night blindness:

  • gradual deterioration of visual perception;
  • the retina does not respond well to the light source;
  • color perception deteriorates;
  • dark spots appear;
  • foreign body sensation;
  • loss of orientation in space.

If night blindness manifests itself in an adult, then Iskersky-Bito plaques may indicate the disease. They appear as spots on the conjunctiva of the eyes and are colored in a characteristic grey colour, and are also located flush with the surface of the shell.

If nyctalopia has developed due to a lack of vitamins, the patient will experience slightly different symptoms. The person exhibits some of the above changes and also becomes dehydrated skin covering, gums begin to bleed, heavily compacted areas appear on the body. Night blindness manifests itself in characteristic features, to which are added such symptoms as keratomalacia. In a place where the cornea of ​​the eye has softened a little, the patient may experience erosion or an ulcer.

In childhood, anxiety manifests itself with the onset of darkness.

Diagnostics

A disease such as night blindness can only be diagnosed by a doctor. If a person experiences some of the symptoms listed above, they should definitely consult an ophthalmologist. Using electroretinography and medical history analysis, the physician can determine correct diagnosis and determine the causes of eye abnormalities.

also in diagnostic measures The patient may be referred for the following examinations:

  • perimetry – identification of eye fields;
  • adaptometry - a test for the perception of a light source;
  • electrooculography – examination eye muscles and the surface of the retina during eye movement.

Treatment

If a person is diagnosed with congenital hemeralopia, then treatment is impossible. Other forms of the disease can be cured with medications and folk ways. In very rare and severe cases Doctors resort to surgical therapy.

Emerging problems with essential type eyes can be eliminated with diet. The patient is simply prescribed to use more vitamin A, as well as compliance with the correct and healthy regime day. Diet therapy that can be prescribed to a patient is based on the use of the following ingredients:

  • carrot;
  • yolk from a chicken egg;
  • tomatoes;
  • cheese dairy product;
  • millet;
  • berries;
  • butter;
  • spinach;
  • beef liver.

Also, the patient should not forget about fresh vegetables and fruits. Doctors recommend eating more peaches, pumpkins, green peas, parsley and apricots. In addition to vitamin A, the body needs to be enriched with vitamin E. To do this, it is worth adding nuts, seeds, potatoes and broccoli to the diet.

Drug treatment for night blindness involves taking vitamins and special drops to improve vision. Often the drops contain vitamin complexes, which have a positive effect on the retina.

Traditional medicine provides for the elimination of hemeralopia in the following ways:

  • drink fish oil three times a day;
  • take rosehip decoction.

It is possible to treat the disease surgically only if hemeralopia manifests itself in a person in a symptomatic form. Often surgery is prescribed for patients with glaucoma. Thanks to operational assistance the patient regains his former vision at any lighting intensity.

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Diabetes represents such chronic illness, in which the work is subject to damage endocrine system. Diabetes mellitus, the symptoms of which are based on long-term increase concentrations of glucose in the blood and on the processes accompanying the altered state of metabolism, develops in particular due to a lack of insulin, a hormone produced by the pancreas, due to which the body regulates the processing of glucose in the tissues of the body and in its cells.