Macular oedema

Macular oedema is painless and you might not notice it in its initial phase. As it progresses, symptoms include blurred central vision and distorted images (alterations in the shape of surrounding objects, deformed facial features, broken or twisted lines, etc.) and changes in the perception of colours. These symptoms are characteristic of damage to the macula and may hinder everyday activities such as reading, writing or other tasks requiring precision.

Macular oedema is a relatively frequent complication of diabetic retinopathy and, in fact, is the main cause of vision loss in patients with diabetes.

There are, however, other diseases that multiply the risk of suffering macular oedema, such as:

• AMD
• Vitreous detachment
• Retinal dystrophies
• Uveitis
• Eye trauma
• Eye tumours

On rare occasions, cataract, retina or glaucoma surgery might cause macular oedema, which can also appear as a side effect of some medications

Miranza clinics offer all the solutions available for the treatment of macular oedema:

• Mild macular oedema: this is often solved with anti-inflammatory medication in the form of eye drops.
• Moderate-severe macular oedema without traction: intraocular-injected drugs can be used –primarily corticosteroids and anti-antiogenics to reduce the inflammation and prevent the formation of new blood vessels–, as well as the laser photocoagulation technique to seal the areas of the retina where fluid is leaked.
• Moderate-severe macular oedema with traction: these cases are caused by the traction of the vitreous gel over the macula. We therefore normally perform surgery known as a vitrectomy in order to reposition the fluid that fills the eyeball and prevent it from pulling on the centre of the retina.