As you probably already know, retinal detachment risk increases by 4x for mild myopia, and as much as 10x for high myopia (over -5 diopters).
It’s a real risk, and you only have a very small window to get to surgery before the detachment is likely irreversible. Which means, blindness. If you misinterpret the symptoms or don’t rush to the hospital, your myopia does increase your risk of going blind by 4x to 10x.
If you want the gory details, we have actual stories from individuals who experienced this first hand. Here, for a quick read.
Fortunately retinal detachment surgery is no big deal:
Considering that prevention would require healthy habits, the alternative of ignoring it and then just going for a quick outpatient procedure is actually going to save a lot of time. And it’s just a little rummaging around in your eyeball!
Not great, all of that. And while you probably don’t hear so much as a peep on the prevention front from the optometrist, the acute care business is certainly on the ball.
Transparency Market Research just published a rather glowing report:
“According to a fact sheet compiled by Prevent Blindness in America, more than 7 million Americans over the age of 40 have diabetic retinopathy. Likewise, more than 2 million Americans aged over 50 suffer from age-related macular degeneration. The number of people suffering from retinal diseases is on a rise globally, and this has spurred a massive demand for retinal surgery. Consequently, the global retinal surgery devices market is likely to report higher revenues and expand at a healthy growth rate. “
Look at that. Spurred massive demand, and a healthy grow rate. Splendid!
But why stop there. Let’s find out just where most of this healthy, healthy grows come from. Here goes:
“Moving forward through the forecast period, the retinal detachment application segment will emerge as the leader as vitrectomy is currently the most effectual treatment for patients with severe retinal detachment.