What is night blindness - symptoms and treatment. Night blindness

2438 03/08/2019 5 min.

Eye diseases and vision-related illnesses can strike a person at any time throughout life from birth. Some diseases are acquired under certain conditions, others are inherited. And in all situations, it is necessary to know about the possibilities of treatment, prevention and the consequences of inaction, especially when it comes to such common disorders as night blindness.

Definition of disease

By medication

As prescribed by the doctor, patients are required to take vitamins A and PP, as well as elements of group B. The dosage is usually set by the doctor. In some cases, it is possible to prescribe riboflavin - eye vitamin drops twice a day, one drop in each eye. Self-medication in the prevention and treatment of deviations is not recommended.

Folk remedies

In the treatment of any diseases (including eye diseases) they do not lose their popularity and traditional methods. However, before using them, it is necessary to consult with doctors, especially if they act as an addition to the main ones, since impeccable compatibility is also important various means and drugs.

In addition to enriching your diet with fortified foods, you can drink one mustard seed per day, gradually increasing the dosage to twenty pieces. Taking fish oil according to the instructions suggested by the manufacturer of the drug will also be useful.

Complex treatment can be supplemented by regular intake of herbal infusions and decoctions:

  • From cornflower. 10 grams of grass must be poured into a glass hot water for 15 minutes and take a tablespoon three to four times a day before meals.
  • Medicinal collection. In equal proportions (one teaspoon each), mix the herbs of lingonberry, viburnum, primrose, blackberry, lemon balm, raspberry and green knotweed root and infuse in a third of a liter of boiling water for 1 hour. Take half a glass three times a day.

Prevention

If vision impairment in the dark is not caused by congenital pathologies, prevention can be carried out. First of all, you need to monitor your diet and, if possible, check the level of vitamins in your body. It is recommended to wear quality Sunglasses and avoid frequent use of solarium services. It is important to regularly visit an ophthalmologist, especially if there is a risk of hemeralopia. If a person has cataracts, glaucoma and other diseases of the organs of vision, it is necessary to begin their treatment on time to prevent the development of complications in the form of night blindness.

To reduce the risks of any eye diseases and visual disturbances, you need to limit the use of electronic gadgets and not spend a lot of time in front of a computer screen, especially in the evening.

In case of hereditary night blindness, systematic observation by an ophthalmologist is necessary from birth. Prevention in in this case is impossible, but the symptoms of the disease can be alleviated by following all the recommendations of medical professionals.

Video

conclusions

Hemeralopia or night blindness is a disorder of the quality of vision that can cause a lot of trouble for the patient, up to mental disorders. But when correct appointment and treatment, any discomfort associated with this deviation can be reduced, even if it is congenital. And prevention and taking care of one’s own health can save a person from the likelihood of acquiring an illness.

If the patient has difficulty seeing pictures in the dark or in poor lighting, then this indicates a disease such as night blindness. Scientifically, the disease is called nyctalopia or hemeralopia and occurs in adults or children. The disease is caused congenital anomalies visual organs, and symptoms may appear due to an unbalanced diet or liver dysfunction. When a patient is ill, one or both eyes become less sensitive to light, and the visual field also narrows, resulting in the development of color blindness, characterized by poor discrimination between primary colors. As soon as the patient notices deterioration of vision at dusk and other signs of night blindness, it is necessary to immediately contact a doctor who will diagnose and tell you how to treat.

Untimely treatment for night blindness provokes dangerous disorders, and complete loss often occurs. visual function.

Description of the pathology

Classification

The clinical picture of night blindness may vary, depending on the variety pathological process. Descriptions of the main types of illness are presented in the table:

VarietyPeculiarities
CongenitalDiffers in hereditary character
Diagnosed in early childhood or in adolescence
At dusk, the patient's visual function steadily decreases, which requires longer adaptation to the dark
SymptomaticManifests against the background of degenerative processes in the retina of the eye
Most often has an acquired character
Often combined with other ophthalmological pathologies and has an extensive clinical picture
EssentialAssociated with a lack of vitamin A in the body or its improper metabolism
Mostly diagnosed in people dependent on alcohol or with a poor diet
Symptoms appear over several months, then, more often, go away on their own

Why it occurs: reasons


Vitamin A deficiency is one of the reasons for the development of pathology.

Night blindness a person may have a congenital character, which most often means the development of the disease even in childhood. In a healthy patient, the retina includes rods and cones, which are responsible for the development of black-and-white and color images. Rod-shaped cells contain rhodopsin, which breaks down when exposed to light, and dark time days is restored, which occurs due to vitamin A in the body. If the latter is lacking, then night blindness develops. An abnormal ratio of rods and cones also causes the progression of the disease. The disease may be affected by the following reasons:

  • low hemoglobin;
  • impaired liver function;
  • exhaustion of the body;
  • genetic predisposition.

Night blindness most often occurs due to a lack of vitamin A, but glaucoma and other ophthalmological pathologies also lead to clinical manifestations of the disorder. People who have cataracts to one degree or another are also at risk. Night blindness is no less common in patients with astigmatism or myopia. Patients with such visual impairments need to visit an ophthalmologist and carefully monitor their eyes in order to promptly prevent the progression of night blindness.

How to recognize the symptoms?


The patient may also experience a disorder such as color blindness.

Every person should know what the disorder looks like and manifests itself, since it is quite common and can begin to develop at any age. Night blindness is often mistaken for color blindness, although the second pathology often develops against the background of the first. The disease can be recognized by the following symptoms:

  • poor vision, which is mainly recorded in the evening hours or in low light conditions;
  • decreased visual acuity;
  • strong sensitivity of the retina at dusk;
  • inability to distinguish colors, especially blue shades;
  • the appearance of spots before the eyes;
  • problems with orientation in space;
  • inflammatory reaction in the conjunctiva;
  • drying of the mucous membrane of the eye;
  • cutting pain in the visual organs;
  • fragility and hair loss;
  • formation of ulcers on the cornea.

If vision has decreased in only one eye, this does not indicate the progression of night blindness. In pathology, both visual organs are damaged.

Diagnostic procedures

An ophthalmologist checks the clarity of vision using special tables.

It is possible to get rid of night blindness only after establishing its type and source of occurrence. If pathology is suspected, contact an ophthalmologist who will conduct a comprehensive examination of the visual organs. Using Sivtsev's tables, visual acuity is determined. Such a diagnosis is known as visometry. If night blindness appeared in childhood, then to confirm it, an examination is carried out using the Orlova table. To make an accurate diagnosis, it is necessary to do other diagnostic procedures, including:

  • Perimetry. Diagnostics is aimed at determining the visual field.
  • Ophthalmoscopy. The specialist examines the fundus and evaluates the disc optic nerve, retina and vascular plexuses.
  • Tonometry, which measures intraocular pressure.
  • Biomicroscopic diagnostics of visual organs.
  • Refractometry and electroretinography used in advanced cases of night blindness.

How to treat it correctly?

Medicines


After making a diagnosis, the ophthalmologist prescribes necessary medications.

Required complex treatment night blindness, which is selected by the doctor after comprehensive examination. The problem can be dealt with with the help of medications. various effects. Before treatment, it is important to read the instructions for use of each medication so that complications of the disease do not arise. Night blindness causes a number of negative symptoms and can also provoke the appearance of an infectious focus, so the patient is often prescribed eye drops with antibacterial and antimicrobial effects. It is recommended to use the following medications: Night blindness is associated with impaired levels of certain groups of vitamins, which can be replenished with the help of correction daily diet. Meals should be balanced and include plenty of calories. Patients with eye pathologies are often prescribed dietary supplements, for example, Flavigran. It is recommended to eat the following foods every day to eliminate the signs of night blindness:

  • Cod liver;
  • butter;
  • milk and hard cheese;
  • chicken eggs;
  • berries and fruits in fresh, such as rowan, blackberry, black currant, peaches and others;
  • vegetables containing vitamin A.

Although congenital night blindness cannot be cured through diet, it is still worth following it to prevent complications.

11.09.2014 | Viewed by: 5,460 people.

Hemeralopia, or, in common parlance, night blindness, is a disorder of adaptation of 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.

In chickens retina There are almost no rods in their eyes, and therefore, already 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 with a pathological decrease in the number of rods, a change 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, vitamin deficiency and useful substances, 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 ophthalmic diseases, including high myopia, glaucoma, 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 severe loss of vision in low light conditions. 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.

In some patients it disappears altogether color vision 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 type of night blindness to respond to adequate treatment measures.

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

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.

Thank you

Night blindness is poor, impaired vision in low light (eg, darkness, twilight, night, etc.). This means that in good light a person has completely normal vision, but if he goes into any room with a lack of light or it gets dark outside, then he sees poorly. That is, when darkness sets in or lighting decreases, a pronounced deterioration in vision occurs.

Medical designation of the disease night blindness and its
synonyms

Night blindness is the popular name for the disease, which in the Russian terminological tradition is referred to as hemeralopia. In general, the term “hemeralopia” is formed from three Greek words – “hemer”, “ala” and “op”, which are translated into Russian as “day”, “blind” and “sight”, respectively. That is, the final translation of the term “hemeralopia” is “day blindness”. As you can see, the literal translation of the term does not reflect the essence of the disease, since with night blindness a person sees poorly in the dark, that is, at night and in the evening, and not during the day. However, this very term in non-English-speaking countries, including the post-Soviet space, is used to designate poor eyesight in the dark for a long time (more than a hundred years), because once a mistake was made in the name of the disease and was subsequently not corrected. It is in this way that, on the basis of the “established” name, the term “hemeralopia” has come to this day to designate widely known disease- night blindness.

In English-speaking and many other countries, the medical term for night blindness is nyctalopia. The term "nyctalopia" is also derived from three Greek words "nyct", "ala" and "op", which are translated as "night", "blind" and "sight", respectively. Accordingly, the final full translation of the term “nyctalopia” is “night blindness”. As you can see, nyctalopia fully corresponds to the essence and meaning of the disease, popularly called night blindness. However, this linguistically and functionally correct term is used to refer to night blindness only in English-speaking countries, and former colonies Great Britain.

Due to these features, night blindness is called hemeralopia in Russia, and nyctalopia abroad. Therefore, the terms “nyctalopia” and “hemeralopia” in the mouths of English-speaking and Russian-speaking doctors, respectively, will be synonyms denoting the same disease, known by popular name like night blindness.

Night blindness - the essence of the disease and general characteristics

Night blindness is poor, low vision in poor lighting. Moreover, vision becomes poor only in the dark or when the room is poorly lit, and in daytime or in bright light a person sees perfectly. Night blindness can be either an independent disease or a symptom of some other pathologies of the human eye.

Both men and women are equally susceptible to night blindness. However, at menopausal age (about 50 years) in women this pathology develops more often than in men, which is due to hormonal and powerful endocrine changes that occur in their body and affect the functioning of all organs and systems, including the eyes. Hormonal changes During menopause, the risk of developing night blindness increases, so at the age of 50 there are more women suffering from this disease than men. In all others age categories The ratio of men and women suffering from night blindness is the same and is approximately 1:1.

Night blindness never develops among the peoples of the Far North (for example, the Khanty, Mansi, Eskimos, Kamchadals, etc.) and the Aborigines (Indians) of the Australian continent. This is due to the fact that the eyes of the peoples of the Far North during the course of evolution have adapted to vision in the dark, since most of the time they are forced to live in polar night conditions. The aborigines of the Australian continent also, for some reason, during the course of evolution, acquired the ability to see in the dark 4 times better compared to representatives of the Caucasian race.

The essence of night blindness is that as soon as for any reason a person finds himself in a situation with poor lighting, he ceases to clearly distinguish the outlines of objects and their shape, he sees everything as if in a fog. The colors are practically indistinguishable; everything seems simply monochromatic and darkened. A person is especially bad at distinguishing Blue colour. He often sees dark spots or shadows on objects. In addition, the field of view is significantly narrowed. When moving from darkness to a well-lit room or space, colored spots may appear on objects. To clearly imagine the essence of night blindness, you need to look at Figures 1 and 2, which depict exactly how a person with normal vision and someone suffering from hemeralopia sees the surrounding picture.


Figure 1 – Perception of the surrounding space in low light (at dusk) by a person with normal vision.


Figure 2 - Perception of the surrounding space in low light (at dusk) by a person suffering from night blindness.

Night blindness has been known to mankind since ancient times and is associated with any disruption of the retina or optic nerve. Hemeralopia significantly reduces a person’s quality of life, since it can provoke a fear of the dark and severe orientation disorder in the dark, which is fraught with injury and dangerous situations that arise when performing normal actions.

Classification and characteristics of types of night blindness

Depending on the causes of occurrence, all types of night blindness are divided into three types:
1. Congenital night blindness;
2. Essential night blindness;
3. Symptomatic night blindness.

Congenital night blindness is inherited and manifests itself in early age– in children or adolescents. The causes of congenital night blindness are often various genetic diseases, such as, for example, Usher syndrome or hereditary retinitis pigmentosa.

Essential night blindness represents functional impairment work of the retina, provoked by a deficiency of vitamins A, PP and B 2 or the microelement zinc. The causes of essential night blindness are various states, in which the intake or absorption of vitamins A, PP and B2 is disrupted, for example, poor quality nutrition, fasting, liver disease or digestive tract, alcohol abuse, rubella, poisoning with any toxic substances or long-term exposure bright light.

Symptomatic night blindness develops against the background various diseases eyes associated with damage to the retina or optic nerve. In this case, night blindness is a symptom of the following severe lesions eye – high myopia, glaucoma, taperetinal dystrophy, chorioretinitis, optic nerve atrophy, siderosis.

Besides listed types hemeralopia, doctors and scientists identify another condition called false night blindness. In this case, a person’s vision is impaired and deteriorates in the dark and in low light conditions due to simple eye fatigue, for example, after working for a long time with computer monitors, televisions, locators or other devices, etc. False night blindness is not a disease, but reflects a functional deterioration in the functioning of the eye analyzer, resulting from its overstrain. After a person gives his eyes good vacation, vision will be completely restored. However, if a person often overstrains his eyes and does not give them quality rest, this can lead to serious illnesses and persistent vision loss.

Causes of night blindness

The immediate cause of night blindness is a decrease in the number of specific cells in the retina, which are responsible for the perception of images of the surrounding space in low light conditions.

It is known that the retina of the eye has two main types of light-sensitive cells, called rods and cones (see Figure 3). Sticks are responsible for twilight vision, and cones, on the contrary, are responsible for vision in bright lighting conditions. Normally, there are many more rods on the retina than cones, since a person finds himself in low-light situations much more often than in conditions of ideal and bright lighting.

Normally, the retina of the eye contains approximately 115,000,000 rods and only 7,000,000 cones. The cause of night blindness is either a violation of the structure of the rods or a decrease in their number. Most often immediate cause night blindness is the decay or disruption of the synthesis of the special visual pigment rhodopsin, which is the main functional unit of the rods. As a result, the sticks lose their normal structure and cease to function fully, that is, a person develops night blindness.


Figure 3 - Rods and cones found on the retina.

The cause of congenital night blindness is a genetic mutation that is inherited. This mutation or breakdown in genes does not lead to the development of severe congenital deformities, but only causes night blindness - a disease with which a person can easily live. And since night blindness is a disease compatible with life, a fetus with such a defect in the genes is not “discarded” through spontaneous miscarriage, but continues to develop normally. Night blindness is often combined with other genetic diseases, such as Usher syndrome or hereditary retinitis pigmentosa.

The causes of symptomatic night blindness are various serious illnesses associated with retinal damage:

  • High myopia (myopia more than -6);
  • Glaucoma;
  • Pigmentary dystrophies of the retina;
  • Chorioretinitis;
  • Optic nerve atrophy;
  • Siderosis (deposition of iron salts in the tissues of the eye).
Symptomatic night blindness is not an independent disease, but acts exclusively as a sign of another, more serious pathology of the retina.

Essential night blindness develops under the influence various factors, causing deficiency or impaired absorption of vitamins A, PP and B2. These factors may be following states or diseases:

  • Poor nutrition, in which there is a deficiency of vitamins (A, PP and B 2) and minerals;
  • Starvation;
  • Anemia;
  • Past rubella or chickenpox;
  • Liver diseases;
  • Diseases of the digestive tract;
  • Chronic alcohol abuse;
  • Any poisoning (intoxication due to infections, poisoning, alcohol or tobacco abuse, etc.);
  • Exhaustion of the body;
  • Treatment with drugs that interfere with the absorption of vitamin A, for example, Quinine, etc.;
  • Prolonged exposure to bright light.
Vitamin A deficiency is most important for the development of night blindness, since this compound is the substrate for the synthesis of visual pigment. Therefore, the risk of night blindness is highest in people suffering specifically from vitamin A deficiency.

However, essential night blindness does not develop immediately, since from the onset of chronic vitamin A deficiency to the appearance clinical symptoms It may take at least two years. This is due to the fact that the reserves of vitamin A present in the tissues of the human body will last for about one year, provided that this compound does not come from the outside at all. However, in practice there are no situations when vitamin A does not enter the human body at all, so reserves are depleted longer than a year and on the formation clinical manifestations Night blindness occurs for at least two years.

Symptoms of night blindness

Regardless of the variety, night blindness manifests itself with the same symptoms, but their severity may vary. With night blindness, a person's vision deteriorates greatly when exposed to low light conditions, for example, twilight, at night, in a room with a small number of lamps, etc.

In night blindness, vision adaptation is impaired when moving from a relatively light room to a dark room and back. This means that a person cannot orient himself for a long time and begin to see normally when he moves from one level of illumination to another. Moreover, this is observed both during the transition from dark to light, and vice versa, from a lighted place to a darkened one.

In poor lighting, a person’s field of vision narrows, and he sees the picture of the world around him in a very narrow frame, as if through a pipe or a small window. In addition, a person ceases to clearly see the shape and size of objects, and also does not distinguish colors. The difference between blue and blue is especially bad in case of night blindness. yellow colors. A person begins to notice that he, in principle, does not perceive colors correctly, since a violation occurs Purkinje effect . The Purkinje effect is the phenomenon of different perceptions of colors as light levels decrease. Thus, at dusk, red colors appear darker, and blue colors, on the contrary, appear lighter. The overall picture is seen in dark, muted tones, and there is a feeling of vision as if in a fog.

In addition, with night blindness, the eye is insufficiently sensitive to light, so a person needs very bright lighting to read or write. The need for bright light for writing and reading against the background of normal vision at dusk is the first sign of the development of night blindness.

Night blindness often causes decreased vision. This means that in normal lighting conditions a person has 100% vision, but at dusk it drops by several units. On the conjunctiva of the eye with essential night blindness are found Iskersky-Bito plaques .

Poor vision in low light conditions can frighten a person and ultimately cause a fear of the dark. Especially often, fear of the dark develops against the background of night blindness in children with a congenital disease.

Diagnosis of night blindness

Diagnosis of night blindness is based on a person’s characteristic complaints. Based on complaints, the doctor suspects night blindness and then confirms the disease with certain instrumental studies.

To confirm night blindness and determine its type, the following diagnostic tests are performed:

  • Fundus examination. In essential hemeralopia, the fundus of the eye is normal; in symptomatic and congenital hemeralopia, it looks like the pathology that caused night blindness.
  • Detecting the presence of plaques on the conjunctiva of the eye.
  • Perimetry (narrowing of visual fields is revealed).
  • Adaptometry. A person looks at the bright screen of the device for 2 minutes, after which an object is placed on it and the time after which it becomes visible to the person being examined is noted. The norm is no more than 45 seconds. With night blindness, a person sees an object on the screen later than 45 seconds.
  • Refractometry.

Night blindness - treatment

Treatment for night blindness depends on the type of disease. So, with symptomatic night blindness, treatment is carried out for the underlying disease that caused the impairment of twilight vision.

The principles of therapy for essential and congenital night blindness are the same, however, their success and effectiveness are different. Congenital night blindness is practically untreatable, and a person develops a persistent decrease in vision. Essential night blindness, on the contrary, responds well to treatment, since it is associated with a deficiency of vitamins A, PP and B.

The main method of treating essential and congenital night blindness is to take synthetic vitamins A, PP and B 2. You should also include foods containing these vitamins in your diet. Diet, rich in vitamins A, PP and B 2 in combination with taking vitamins medicines, is the main treatment for all types of night blindness.

To treat night blindness, adults need to take vitamin A 50,000–100,000 IU per day, and children 1000–5000 IU per day. Riboflavin (B 2) adults and children should take 0.02 g per day.

Foods rich in vitamins A, PP and B2, which must be included in your diet to treat night blindness, are as follows:

  • Leaf salad;
  • Greens (parsley, dill, celery, spinach, young nettle leaves, etc.);
  • Cod liver (eat small pieces in raw form);

Hemelaropia (night blindness) is a pathology characterized by worsening or complete absence vision in low light conditions, at dusk. At the same time, daytime visibility remains at the same level. Hemeralopia may be a symptom of any ocular pathology or act as an independent disease.

Night blindness disease

Pathology develops against the background of a lack of Retinol (vitamin A), responsible for the functioning of the visual organs. This element is part of the photosensitive substance (visual purple) located in the retina of the eye.

Night blindness not only creates problems with visibility, but also increases the risk of serious injury due to the impairment. spatial orientation at dusk.

Hemelaropia poses the greatest danger to drivers. A person driving has a narrowing field of view, which is why he is poorly oriented in a situation happening to the side, and, accordingly, is unable to adequately assess the situation and quickly make the right decision.

In addition, with nyctalopia, there is a violation of dark adaptation - the eyes cannot instantly switch from the harsh illumination of oncoming traffic back to night visibility conditions, resulting in blinding, which can provoke an accident.

Types of pathology

Treatment of the pathology begins only after full examination and making an accurate diagnosis. The specialist determines the type of disease, as well as the reasons for its development, then, based on the data obtained, prescribes appropriate therapy.

Distinguish following forms hemeralopia:

  • Congenital. Caused by genetic disorders, but no ophthalmological changes are observed.
  • Essential. It develops due to a lack of vitamin A, without which the synthesis of rhodopsin, the main visual pigment, is impossible.
  • Symptomatic. It occurs against the background of various eye diseases - glaucoma, cataracts, myopia with changes in the fundus, retinal pigment abiotrophy, siderosis.

Reasons for the development of hemelaropia

There are no specific factors that provoke the development of pathology. The main reason is a deficiency of retinol, which is responsible for clear vision. The development of hemelaropia is provoked by the following factors:

Symptoms of nyctalopia

Nyctalopia does not manifest itself in good lighting. Man is capable of living full life, performing necessary actions: work on a computer, write, read, etc. Hemelaropia can only appear at dusk - objects are seen blurry, image clarity disappears, sometimes there is a violation of color perception (especially blue).

A patient suffering from this pathology dramatically changes his behavior in poor lighting conditions: he is more careful, coordination of movements is impaired. The disease is often accompanied by dry mucous membranes and skin, and the development of conjunctivitis.

In addition, there are following symptoms night blindness in humans:

  • hair fragility and alopecia (loss);
  • keratinization of certain areas of the skin on the buttocks and abdomen;
  • the formation of ulcers on the cornea of ​​the eyes, especially for children.

If you notice at least one of these manifestations, immediately consult a specialist. The ophthalmologist will conduct necessary examination and, based on the data obtained, will prescribe treatment.

Diagnosis for night blindness

In order to make an accurate diagnosis, the following activities:

In addition, the specialist evaluates the condition of the retina, blood vessels, optic nerve head.

Therapeutic measures for nyctalopia

Treatment of the disease begins with determining the type of disease, as well as establishing the exact causes of the development of the pathology.

The congenital form of hemeralopia cannot be treated. In other cases, carry out laboratory research to determine the concentration of vitamins A, group B and PP in the body. If any of them is missing, an appointment is made.

If the development of other pathologies is suspected, the ophthalmologist refers the patient for consultation with specialized specialists (for example, an endocrinologist), since diabetics very often suffer from deterioration of vision at dusk.

In addition, to correct poor vision at dusk, the doctor prescribes vitamin complexes, including vitamin A, rutin and nicotinic acid. At the same time, it is recommended to take medications that help improve the nutrition of the retina and the production of rhodopsin (the main component). In this case high efficiency showed medicines based on blueberries.

Eye drops for illness

To support visual function, vitamin B12 drops (Riboflavin) are prescribed. This multicomponent drug helps enrich the eye tissue with oxygen, as well as facilitate the process of patency nerve impulses in the retina. Riboflavin is used for conjunctivitis, keratitis, and nyctalopia. The drug is instilled twice a day, drop by drop (in both eyes). The duration of therapy is 5-15 days. Contraindications - individual intolerance to the components of the drug.

Indications for surgery

Nyctalopia is treated in outpatient setting . If there are other ophthalmological pathologies that cannot be cured through traditional therapy, it is indicated surgery. For example, an advanced form of glaucoma requires sclerectomy, since it is not possible to reduce eye pressure using conventional methods. Myopia is corrected with a laser, and cataracts are treated with surgery that involves replacing the lens.

Diet for hemelaropia

At the first symptoms of the disease, you must urgently seek help from an ophthalmologist and reconsider your diet. Particular attention should be paid to the amount of vitamin A in the foods consumed. If visual impairment is observed even with balanced diet, it is necessary to establish the cause - conduct an examination of the liver and gastrointestinal tract, stop smoking, and overuse strong alcohol.

In addition to retinol, the body of a child and an adult should receive a sufficient amount of trace elements, minerals, nicotinic acid and riboflabin.

The menu of a person suffering from hemeralopia includes the following products:

Very useful to cook various cereals with the addition of vegetables and bran. You should definitely include lean meat in your diet. It is also necessary to pay Special attention on blueberries, the fruits of which contain an active element - anthocyanoside, which helps stimulate the production of rhodopsin - the light-perceiving pigment of the retina. This will improve eye performance in changing light conditions.

Traditional medicine

In addition to those prescribed by the doctor medications and following a diet enriched with vitamins, treatment can be supplemented with traditional medicine.

  • Carrot. Mix grated root vegetables (3 tablespoons) with milk (1 l), cook until soft. Drink 1/3 cup before bedtime. You can also prepare fresh carrot juice, which should be drunk half a glass twice a day, adding a little oil and a spoonful of honey.
  • Cornflower. Pour dry raw materials (flowers and grass) with water and cook for about three minutes, leave for an hour. The components are taken in the proportion of 1 teaspoon/glass of boiling water. Drink the decoction during the day in 4 doses. Course - 3-4 weeks. At the same time, lotions are made from this decoction daily.
  • Sea ​​buckthorn. During the berry picking season, you need to eat half a glass of fruits every day, as well as add them to food and prepare medicinal drinks. For the winter, they make a preparation from sea buckthorn, mashed with sugar.
  • Every day you need to drink 1 table of rosehip syrup. l.
  • Prepare healing decoction from millet (1 cup) and water (2 l). Mix ingredients and cook until full readiness. Consume 2-3 tablespoons daily. l. until there is improvement.
  • It is also recommended to take every day fish fat in small quantities.

Preventive measures for nyctalopia

Hemelaropia is a pathology that is very easy to prevent, provided that it is not hereditary. To do this, you must adhere to the following recommendations:

Prognosis for the treatment of hemeralopia

In most cases, the prognosis for treatment of the acquired form of the disease is quite favorable. However, hemeralopia in an advanced stage in the absence of treatment for the underlying disease can lead to complete loss visual function.

The essential type of pathology is quite easy to treat without causing complications. As a rule, if you follow all recommendations for taking fortified preparations, as well as using special diet, the patient's vision improves very quickly.

Night blindness is a rather unusual disease in humans. Manifests itself in the lack of ability to see and navigate in the dark. Hemeralopia is treatable only if it is acquired. To do this, you need to consume a sufficient amount of vitamins, adhere to healthy image life, spend preventive actions. If you notice the first symptoms of the development of pathology, you must immediately contact the clinic and undergo all necessary research in order to establish the exact cause of the disease. Ignoring signs of illness can lead to serious complications and decreased quality of vision.

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