At some point many of us will experience minor eye issues (i.e., dry eyes, inflammation or Uveitis, eye strain, floaters, color blindness, excess tears, night blindness, and slight degrades in eye sight. problems at one time or another, especially as we age. While many minor eye issues can be treated with home remedies and over the counter eye drops, more serious eye issues will need to be treated under the care of an optometrist or ophthalmologists supervised care. 

Here’s a list of the most common eye diseases:

1. Conjunctivitis 

More commonly referred to as pinkeye, conjunctivitis occurs most often due to eye irritation or eye infection. Symptoms can be extremely uncomfortable and include itching, burning, redness, excess tears, eye discharge, a feeling that something is stuck in the eye all due to inflammation of the sclera (or rear eyelid tissues).  

2. Glaucoma

Glaucoma occurs when excess pressure builds up so much inside the eye that it may press upon and cause damage to the optic nerve. Glaucoma may cause few symptoms or pain in the early stages so any eye inflammation or vision changes should be brought to the attention of your optometrist immediately. Glaucoma is treated using prescription eye drops, or in severe cases, surgery.

3. Cataracts

Cataracts are small, cloudy patches in the eye lens that block light via the retina (where image processing takes place). Cataracts on the eye lens may cause blurry vision, halos, or glare, particularly at nighttime. These progress slowly and often don’t cause any telltale symptoms. so regular eye exams are important to catch them before surgery is required. 

4. Retinal diseases

The retina is located at the rear of the eye and is responsible for image processing via the brain. However, these thin cells are often prone to issues in the eye due to other underlying health conditions. For instance, patients with diabetes may experience a condition known as diabetic retinopathy, which affects blood vessels in the retina specifically, and may cause vision loss and permanent eye damage if left untreated. Detached retina may also occur if the thin layer of retinal tissue is pulled or torn from its normal position. Sometimes, there are small tears or holes in the retina. This is extremely painful and requires immediate surgery to seal the detachment.