Myopia
For this unit of Disease we learned about the organization of the human body and how the different organ and organ systems interact with each other. for this project we had to take a disease that runs in our family and show the ripple effect it will have on the body. for this project I choose nearsightedness as it runs in both sides of my family and because of how common it is I thought there could be some interesting patterns with the disease.
Nearsightedness or myopia is a deformity in the eye caused by the eye being longer or the lens
focusing light in front to the retina. It can be caused from the environment by spending the majority of
your time focused on objects close to the eye, such as books and screens. The other cause is
hereditary. Myopia can be a symptom of other diseases such as diabetes and high blood pressure
that can damage blood vessels in the eye. The most common treatment is glasses as they are much
cheaper when compared to eye surgery which can cure to a certain extent as the lens has to be thick
enough to have some shaven off and can cost $220 to $3500. The disease is most common in the
middle class in developed countries as they are most likely to be sitting in front of a screen for
extended periods of time. Some symptoms of Myopia are eye strain, blurry vision, squinting, and eye
fatigue. People with high myopia have increased risks of detached retina, cataracts, and glaucoma.
The image below shows an example of a normally shaped eye in black, the red region shows the
length of myopic eyes, the blue shows the neck that can be deformed, and the pink shows the
shoulder muscle that can be strained both effects are caused by hunching over.
For this project I interviewed four people that have Myopia with different levels of Myopia.
The first person discovered their case in the 3rd grade. A time went on the person's vision got worse.
Then in 8th grade the person tried contacts. The contacts slowed the worsening of the person's eye
sight until the person reached their forties and developed dry eyes. The person had to
go back to glasses and the person's eyes started progressively getting worse. The person's case
was hereditary as the person's mother's side pf the family suffered from myopia. Now the person
had to wear glasses to see at 20/20. The person stated "if you are really nearsighted it becomes
a major issue as if you don't have your glasses". As for the effect on their life it was initially
troublesome having to keep track of their glasses.
The second person I interviewed developed Myopia 40. they discovered their case when they couldn't
see the text on highway signs so navigation became impossible. the only treatment they sought are
glasses and the only effect it had on their mind is the dread of getting old.
focusing light in front to the retina. It can be caused from the environment by spending the majority of
your time focused on objects close to the eye, such as books and screens. The other cause is
hereditary. Myopia can be a symptom of other diseases such as diabetes and high blood pressure
that can damage blood vessels in the eye. The most common treatment is glasses as they are much
cheaper when compared to eye surgery which can cure to a certain extent as the lens has to be thick
enough to have some shaven off and can cost $220 to $3500. The disease is most common in the
middle class in developed countries as they are most likely to be sitting in front of a screen for
extended periods of time. Some symptoms of Myopia are eye strain, blurry vision, squinting, and eye
fatigue. People with high myopia have increased risks of detached retina, cataracts, and glaucoma.
The image below shows an example of a normally shaped eye in black, the red region shows the
length of myopic eyes, the blue shows the neck that can be deformed, and the pink shows the
shoulder muscle that can be strained both effects are caused by hunching over.
For this project I interviewed four people that have Myopia with different levels of Myopia.
The first person discovered their case in the 3rd grade. A time went on the person's vision got worse.
Then in 8th grade the person tried contacts. The contacts slowed the worsening of the person's eye
sight until the person reached their forties and developed dry eyes. The person had to
go back to glasses and the person's eyes started progressively getting worse. The person's case
was hereditary as the person's mother's side pf the family suffered from myopia. Now the person
had to wear glasses to see at 20/20. The person stated "if you are really nearsighted it becomes
a major issue as if you don't have your glasses". As for the effect on their life it was initially
troublesome having to keep track of their glasses.
The second person I interviewed developed Myopia 40. they discovered their case when they couldn't
see the text on highway signs so navigation became impossible. the only treatment they sought are
glasses and the only effect it had on their mind is the dread of getting old.
MacGill, Markus. “Blurry Vision and Diabetes: What's the Connection?” Medical News Today, MediLexicon International, 12 Dec. 2018, www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/310894.php.
“New Genetic Risk Factors for Myopia Discovered.” ScienceDaily, ScienceDaily, 21 Apr. 2016, www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/04/160421133905.htm.2
“What Eye Problems Cause Headaches?” VSP Insurance, www.vspdirect.com/vision-hub/what-eye-problems-cause-headaches.
“What Eye Problems Cause Headaches?” VSP Insurance, www.vspdirect.com/vision-hub/what-eye-problems-cause-headaches.
Comments
Post a Comment