Symptoms of night blindness in humans. Complications and prognosis

Night blindness is a disorder of vision in dark conditions. Found among different age categories, and has both congenital and acquired etiology. Night blindness is called hemeralopia or night blindness also.

Disease night blindness characterized by a decrease in the sensitivity of the retina to light at different light intensities (decrease). Some people with this condition may experience only minor discomfort in the dark, and some may not see anything at all. As a rule, night blindness does not cause complications or changes in the tissues of the eye, unless it is caused by a genetic factor. Decline visual perception objects are especially clearly visible the first time after the lighting decreases, after which the eye adapts to environment. Often the disease night blindness is characterized by a decrease in color perception, especially blue tones. Some patients see dark and colored spots, as well as shadows on fixed objects. This symptomatology is observed along with the main manifestations of the disease.

Causes of the disease night blindness

Night blindness is divided into three types depending on the reasons that provoked it:

Essential;
Congenital;
Symptomatic.

In the first case, there is a lack of vitamins in night blindness, in particular vitamin A. This type is found in most patients with this diagnosis. Also, this type of disease can cause anemia, liver disease and severe exhaustion of the body. Sometimes night blindness develops as a result of treatment with vitamin A antagonist drugs, for example, quinine.

The congenital form of night blindness is not associated with vitamins, although the course of treatment always includes vitamin preparations. Here we are talking about the genetic influence on human health. Pathology of this type is rare and makes itself felt in early childhood. However, to date, the exact causes of the genetic development of the disease have not been identified.

Symptomatic night blindness occurs due to organic eye diseases such as myopia high degree, glaucoma, retinal pigment pathologies. When curing major diseases this phenomenon, as a rule, disappears.

Regardless of the causes of night blindness, impaired vision at dusk occurs due to a disruption in the formation of the rhodopsin pigment in the optic rods of the retina.

Symptoms of night blindness

With night blindness, the patient notes weakened vision and orientation in space due to lack of light. Also, the symptoms are accompanied by a disruption in the process of adaptation to darkness after a bright room. In the twilight, a person ceases to distinguish some colors, which further complicates the situation.

When diagnosing of this disease Drivers are not issued a medical certificate.

Diagnosis of night blindness

The diagnosis is established by an ophthalmologist based on the patient’s complaints and general clinical picture. Research into human adaptation to darkness is also needed. Electroretinography data is required to determine retinal abnormalities.

Treatment of night blindness

The congenital form of the disease cannot be completely cured, but taking certain vitamins for night blindness, although slightly, improves the patient’s vision.

With the essential form, in all cases a high-calorie diet is indicated, enriched with foods containing vitamin A (spinach, carrots, egg yolk, milk, butter, cod liver, cheese), multivitamin A (tomatoes, green pea, carrots, lettuce, blueberries, blackberries, gooseberries, apricots, cherries, peaches, black currants) and riboflavin. Thus, the lack of vitamins in night blindness is compensated for, and vision is restored.

If the disease arose as a result of eye diseases, then treatment of night blindness should be aimed at eliminating the underlying disease. IN in this case the prognosis depends on the course of the underlying disease. Vitamins are also indicated for night blindness.

The disease night blindness is associated with worsening or complete absence visibility at dusk, with low light, also against this background, a person’s orientation in the dark is disturbed. The fact is that at low levels of illumination, the receptors of the retinal rods are responsible for vision, and under the influence of light their pigment (rhodopsin) disintegrates.

What is night blindness

The regeneration process takes some time mandatory participation vitamin A. Based on this, we can conclude that night blindness develops due to structural changes in rods or due to rhodopsin deficiency.

The term "night blindness", types

In ophthalmology, the disease in question has two medical names hemeralopia and nyctalopia. In Russian terminology, the first option is used.

The term “hemerolopia” is derived from the Greek words “hemer”, “ala” and “op”, which translated as “day”, “blind”, “sight”, is used in the countries of the post-Soviet space. The term “nyctalopia” also comes from three Greek words “nyct”, “ala” and “op”, translated as “night”, “blind” and “sight”, used in England and Great Britain.

There are different types of hemeralopia: congenital, essential and symptomatic.

It has hereditary character, begins to manifest itself in childhood and adolescence. During this period, children experience a progressive decrease in visibility at dusk and a lack of adaptation in dark time.

Essential

This form of night blindness is explained by insufficient intake of vitamin A into the body or impaired metabolism. The cause of this condition may be malnutrition during fasting, liver disease, alcohol abuse, or malaria. In such cases, the essential type of night blindness is temporary.

Symptomatic

Appears when:

retinal dystrophy;
inflammatory processes of the retina, as well as the membrane of the blood vessels of the eye,
glaucoma;
atrophy optic nerve;
complicated myopia and other visual abnormalities.

In addition to night blindness, in these cases other symptoms of a specific disease appear.

There is also the concept of false night blindness, which is characterized by a slight deviation in vision in low light against the background of banal eye fatigue. This type of hemeralopia is not subject to therapeutic intervention and goes away in the patient after proper rest.

Causes of the disease

There are no clear reasons that would indicate the development of hemeralopia, but one factor—vitamin A deficiency—is a consequence of severe vision loss in twilight and darkness. Let's consider in what situations the disease night blindness occurs and what factors can provoke it:

genetic predisposition;
anemia;
severe exhaustion of the body;
liver diseases;
retinal diseases ( pigmentary degeneration, detachment, inflammation, etc.);
the use of drugs that are antagonists of vitamin A (for example, quinine);
poor nutrition (this primarily applies to vegetarians);
inflammation of the optic nerve;
myopia (nearsightedness);
physiological deficiency of vitamin A in the body;
transferred infectious diseases, in particular, chicken pox, rubella, measles, herpes;
menopause period;
previous traumatic brain injury;
insufficiently lit work area;
frequent and prolonged exposure to dazzlingly bright light, in the bright sun;
Availability organic diseases eye (myopia, glaucoma, retinal pigment pathologies, etc.);
age over 40 years (during this period, the slow progression of all processes in the body, including the nutrition of the retina, begins).

Diagnostics

To establish a diagnosis of hemeralopia, it is necessary to conduct a number of examinations, which include:

identification of visual acuity using Sivtsev tables (so-called visometry);
use of Orlova tables (for children preschool age who cannot read and do not know letters);
perimetry - a study that determines visual fields;
fundus ophthalmoscopy;
tonometry - determination of intraocular pressure indicators;
eye biomicroscopy;
if necessary, refractometry, electroretinography and ultrasound scanning of the retina.

The doctor also evaluates the condition of the optic nerve head, blood vessels, retina.

Treatment and prognosis

Treatment of night blindness is prescribed depending on the etiology and type. For example, with essential hemeralopia, the basis of treatment is a special diet, when a balanced and high-calorie diet is developed for the patient. The lack of vitamins is compensated by the following products included in the diet:

seafood - cod liver, squid, seaweed, shrimps;
dairy products - cheese, cottage cheese, sour cream;
eggs;
berries and fruits - blackcurrant, blackberry, peach, blueberry, cherry, gooseberry, rowan;
vegetables and green crops - carrots, lettuce, spinach, tomatoes, green peas.

When treating the congenital form of hemeralopia, this diet therapy can also be used, but only a temporary and slight improvement in the condition occurs. But the narrowing of the visual field with insufficient lighting remains.

In the treatment of night blindness, the leading place is to replenish the required amount of vitamin A. Treatment of night blindness in the symptomatic form is necessary depending on the severity of the underlying disease in the patient. For example, surgical correction of myopia and treatment of glaucoma will return the patient normal vision and he will have orientation in the dark.

Eye drops for hemeralopia

To support reduced vision, it is recommended to use Riboflavin drops (vitamin B2). This multicomponent complex will enrich the tissues of the organs of vision with oxygen and facilitate the conduction of nerve impulses in the retina. The complex is prescribed for keratitis, iriditis, night blindness and conjunctivitis.

Place one drop in each eye 2 times a day. Duration of treatment is from 5 to 15 days. The drug is contraindicated for patients who are intolerant to the components of Riboflavin.

Traditional treatment

Before starting to take products prepared according to folk recipes, you need to consult an ophthalmologist, after which you can use the following recipes:

Take daily consumption of a small amount of fish oil as normal;
drink one grain of mustard with plenty of water, the next day 2 grains, etc., increase the amount to 20, and then in the reverse order;
use 1 tbsp. a spoonful of rosehip syrup daily;
prepare a decoction of millet, for which take 1 glass of millet, pour 2 liters of water over it and cook until tender, take 2-3 tablespoons of the pulp every day until visible improvements occur.

Prevention of night blindness

Night blindness is a disease that can be prevented, if it is not hereditary, by performing a number of the following preventive measures:

stick to proper nutrition by eating foods with vitamins, especially A and B2;
avoid the glare of oncoming headlights;
use the welding machine only with a special mask;
Avoid exposure to direct sunlight;
workplace should be well lit;
do not look at the bright snow;
avoid visiting the solarium;
wear Sunglasses as needed;
take place regularly preventive examinations and promptly treat concomitant diseases.

To summarize the above, it should be noted that night blindness is an eye disease that, when correct behavior the patient is completely cured.

Night blindness, or hemeralopia (from the Greek hemera - day, alaos - blind, blinding and ops - eye), is sharp deterioration vision in low light conditions (at dusk, at night, when moving from a brightly lit room to a dark one, during artificial darkness). There is a corresponding deterioration in spatial orientation, there may also be a narrowing of visual fields and a decrease in the perception of blue and yellow flowers.

Why can't you see in the dark?

The rod photoreceptors in the retina are responsible for vision in low light. As is known, under the influence of light, the visual pigment of rods - rhodopsin - disintegrates. Its regeneration occurs with the participation of vitamin A, and this requires certain time. Thus, night blindness is based on either structural changes in rods or rhodopsin deficiency.

What is night blindness?

There are congenital, symptomatic and essential hemeralopia.

Congenital hemeralopia It is hereditary and appears in childhood or adolescence. With congenital hemeralopia, there is a persistent decrease in vision at dusk and a pronounced decrease in adaptation to darkness.

Symptomatic hemeralopia observed in some types of retinal dystrophy (for example, taperetinal dystrophy), with chorioretinitis ( inflammatory diseases retina and choroid), optic nerve atrophy, glaucoma, complicated myopia, siderosis and other eye diseases. In addition to night blindness, in these cases there are other clinical manifestations, corresponding to a specific disease.

Essential hemeralopia is caused by insufficient intake of vitamin A (retinol) into the body or a violation of its metabolism. The reason may be a violation general nutrition during starvation, alcoholism, liver disease, malaria, neurasthenia, etc. In most cases, essential hemeralopia is temporary.

Other manifestations of the disease

Essential hemeralopia is characterized by its appearance on the conjunctiva. eyeball xerotic plaques of Iskersky-Bito – dry flat spots, located, as a rule, within the palpebral fissure. With more severe vitamin A deficiency, there may be necrosis (death) and melting of the corneal tissue (keratomalacia). In general vitamin deficiency there are characteristic features vitamin deficiency: weight loss, dryness skin, bleeding gums, etc.

When examining the visual fields, their narrowing is noted, especially to yellow and blue colors.

Fundus: in congenital and symptomatic hemeralopia, changes in the fundus are determined by the underlying disease; in essential hemeralopia, the fundus is not changed.

Treatment, prevention, prognosis

Congenital hemeralopia currently has no treatment.

For symptomatic hemeralopia, the underlying disease is treated.

Treatment of essential night blindness is based on increasing the intake of vitamin A into the patient’s body, including in the form medicines. At the same time, vitamins B2 and PP are also prescribed. Diet shown rich in vitamin A: milk, butter, liver, carrots, lettuce, spinach, green onions.

Prevention of primary (essential) hemeralopia is sufficient intake of vitamin A with food.

The prognosis is favorable in the treatment of essential night blindness. With symptomatic hemeralopia, the prognosis depends on the nature and severity of the underlying disease.

Night blindness has been known since ancient times, and is correctly called hemeralopia. Doctors do not distinguish between the degrees of this disease (it simply exists or does not exist), however, ophthalmologists draw attention to the fact that hemeralopia significantly reduces a person’s quality of life, and in some cases can have dangerous consequences.

Hemeralopia (or night blindness) is a twilight vision disorder due to a disease of the retina and optic nerve, which is characterized by weakened vision in the dark. Symptoms: weakened vision and spatial orientation at dusk, disruption of the process of light adaptation, narrowing of visual fields, and sometimes problems with the perception of blue and yellow colors.

Night blindness often occurs in people after 50 years of age. Quantity car accidents with the participation of drivers who have this disease, almost the same as that caused by drunk driving. Doctors warn that a person with hemeralopia simply does not notice dangers on the road at dusk, and in the light of the headlights of oncoming cars, he generally loses orientation - the bright light blinds him, and he does not adapt to the darkness (or adapts slowly).

Therefore, German ophthalmologists suggest that when checking the vision of motorists by a medical commission, they also check for hemeralopia. False “night blindness” - this also happens, although not all ophthalmologists agree with this definition - after all, it either exists or it does not. False hemeralopia is considered to be cases when a decrease in twilight vision occurs, for example, due to long work at the computer, when a person is forced for a long time look at the monitor.

Causes of night blindness

Both women and men are equally susceptible to hemeralopia, but it has been noted that during menopause, when female body Various endocrine changes occur, the risk of developing night blindness in women is slightly higher than in men of the same age. It is known that the aborigines of Australia have increased vigilance at night, and their visual acuity is higher. Studies show that their vision is developed at a level of 400%.

Northern peoples also see better in the dark. This ability has been developed over centuries - in the north there are significantly fewer sunny days, and the eye has “historically” adapted to such conditions. Hemeralopia greatly interferes in winter, when daylight hours become shorter. Among possible reasons experts call hidden disease body: general exhaustion due to hard work or long-term illness, pregnancy, anemia or glaucoma.

Sometimes the disease is associated with heredity, but it can arise as a result of a disease suffered in early childhood. Often the cause is malnutrition, anemia, toxic effects on the body, and the optic nerve, liver, long-term effects on the eyes bright light. One of the main causes of hemeralopia is considered to be a deficiency of vitamins A, B2 and PP. Especially vitamin A. Congenital hemeralopia manifests itself already in childhood and early adolescence.

Night blindness can be a symptom of the following diseases:

Symptoms of night blindness

First of all, the symptoms of night blindness in humans are manifested by decreased vision in poor lighting. There may be discomfort associated with a feeling of dryness or foreign body in the eye. At the same time, orientation in space is disrupted, especially during a sharp transition from a light room to a dark one. Night blindness is accompanied by a narrowing of the visual field and impaired light perception. Most often, people have difficulty differentiating between blue and yellow.

Older people may develop Iskersky-Bito plaques. They are spots on the conjunctiva of the eyelids ( back surface eyelids), which are colored grey colour and do not rise above the surface of the mucous membrane. Let's figure out which vitamin deficiency causes night blindness in humans: Hemeralopia caused by a lack of vitamin A - it is additionally accompanied by dry skin, bleeding gums, and the appearance of hyperkeratosis (areas of rough thickening of the skin).

These symptoms are often accompanied by itching and scratching of the skin. If there is vitamin deficiency (complete lack of vitamin A), then a person experiences keratomalacia - softening of the cornea of the eye, in the place of which erosions and ulcerative defects subsequently appear. Children suffering from night blindness are very often afraid of the dark and become very restless as evening approaches.

Treatment of night blindness

Congenital hemeralopia, unfortunately, cannot be treated. In other cases, vitamin preparations are prescribed and the eye disease causing hemeralopia is treated. Therefore, first doctors look for the cause of the disease - they determine what the body lacks. Patients with hemeralopia are referred for examination to determine the level of retinol, carotene and vitamin A in the blood. If the concentration of these vitamins is reduced, treatment is prescribed. Consultations with specialists in other fields are recommended.

The result of treatment for night blindness will depend to a very large extent on the causes that caused the disease. Here, perhaps, like complete elimination symptoms and recovery, as well as persistent disorder that does not respond to treatment. One more important point in the treatment of hemeralopia will be the patient's age. The older the patient, the lower the chances of recovery.

Diet and vitamins to prevent night blindness

If twilight blindness occurs in both adults and children, you should Special attention pay attention to the patient's nutrition. Food should contain foods rich, as already noted, in vitamins A and B2. And also RR. These include many vegetables:

carrot;
salad;
green leeks;
spinach.

It is important to combine their use with fats of animal origin: butter, sour cream. It must be remembered that they are learned only together. Berries and fruits you should eat:

apricots;
peaches;
cherries;
gooseberry;
red and black currants;
blueberries and blackberries.

As already mentioned, it is necessary to increase consumption butter, milk, cheese, egg yolks and millet porridge. In addition, the ophthalmologist may prescribe vitamin complexes or ryboflavin and vitamin A preparations.

Questions and answers on the topic "Night blindness"

Question:Hello, at dusk, black, non-transparent circles appear in the center of my field of vision, and when daylight disappear. What is this?

Answer: Hello. dark spot appears in the center of the field of view when pathological process in area macular spot retina of the eye. Another reason for the appearance dark spot in the center of the visual field there may be damage to the choroid. Damage to the choroid leads to impaired nutrition of the retina, and therefore to impaired light perception function. If a dark spot appears in the center of your field of vision, you should first consult an ophthalmologist.

Question:Hello, at dusk I start to see poorly, especially when I look into the distance, everything blurs for me, as if it’s covered in a veil and I have to strain my eyes, and it also happens when I look close and then into the distance everything is blurry for a few seconds. Maybe I don't have enough vitamins or my vision is getting worse? What to do?

Answer: Hello. Your question can only be answered after complete diagnostic examination vision.

The disease night blindness is associated with deterioration or complete absence of visibility at dusk, in low light conditions, and against this background, a person’s orientation in the dark is impaired. The fact is that at low levels of illumination, the receptors of the retinal rods are responsible for vision, and under the influence of light their pigment (rhodopsin) disintegrates.

What is night blindness

The regeneration process lasts some time with the obligatory participation of vitamin A. Based on this, we can conclude that night blindness develops due to structural changes in rods or due to rhodopsin deficiency.

There are different types of hemeralopia: congenital, essential and symptomatic.

Congenital

It is hereditary and begins to appear in childhood and adolescence. During this period, children experience a progressive decrease in visibility at dusk and a lack of adaptation in the dark.

Essential

Symptomatic

Appears when:

retinal dystrophy;
inflammatory processes of the retina, as well as the membrane of the blood vessels of the eye,
glaucoma;
optic nerve atrophy;
complicated myopia and other visual abnormalities.

In addition to night blindness, in these cases other symptoms of a specific disease appear.

Causes of the disease

There are no clear reasons that would indicate the development of hemeralopia, but one factor - lack of vitamin A - is a consequence of severe vision loss in twilight and darkness. Let's consider in what situations the disease night blindness occurs and what factors can provoke it:

genetic predisposition;
anemia;
severe exhaustion of the body;
liver diseases;
retinal diseases (pigmentary degeneration, detachment, inflammation, etc.);
the use of drugs that are antagonists of vitamin A (for example, quinine);
poor nutrition (this primarily applies to vegetarians);
inflammation of the optic nerve;
myopia (nearsightedness);
physiological deficiency of vitamin A in the body;
past infectious diseases, in particular chicken pox, rubella, measles, herpes;
menopause period;
previous traumatic brain injury;
insufficiently lit work area;
frequent and prolonged exposure to dazzlingly bright light, in the bright sun;
the presence of organic eye diseases (myopia, glaucoma, retinal pigment pathologies, etc.);
age over 40 years (during this period, the slow progression of all processes in the body, including the nutrition of the retina, begins).

Diagnostics

To establish a diagnosis of hemeralopia, it is necessary to conduct a number of examinations, which include:

identification of visual acuity using Sivtsev tables (so-called visometry);
use of Orlova's tables (for preschool children who cannot read and do not know letters);
perimetry - a study that determines visual fields;
fundus ophthalmoscopy;
tonometry - determination of intraocular pressure indicators;
eye biomicroscopy;
if necessary, refractometry, electroretinography and ultrasound scanning of the retina.

The doctor also evaluates the condition of the optic nerve head, blood vessels, and retina.

Treatment and prognosis

seafood - cod liver, squid, seaweed, shrimp;
dairy products - cheese, cottage cheese, sour cream;
eggs;
berries and fruits - blackcurrant, blackberry, peach, blueberry, cherry, gooseberry, rowan;
vegetables and green crops - carrots, lettuce, spinach, tomatoes, green peas.

In the treatment of night blindness, the leading place is to replenish the required amount of vitamin A. Treatment of night blindness in the symptomatic form is necessary depending on the severity of the underlying disease in the patient. For example, surgical correction of myopia and treatment of glaucoma will return the patient to normal vision and he will have orientation in the dark.

Eye drops for hemeralopia

Place one drop in each eye 2 times a day. Duration of treatment is from 5 to 15 days. The drug is contraindicated for patients who are intolerant to the components of Riboflavin.

Traditional treatment

Before you start taking remedies prepared according to folk recipes, you need to consult an ophthalmologist, after which you can use the following recipes:

Take daily consumption of a small amount of fish oil as normal;
drink one grain of mustard with plenty of water, the next day 2 grains, etc., increase the amount to 20, and then in the reverse order;
use 1 tbsp. a spoonful of rosehip syrup daily;
prepare a decoction of millet, for which take 1 glass of millet, pour 2 liters of water over it and cook until tender, take 2-3 tablespoons of the pulp every day until visible improvements occur.

Prevention of night blindness

Night blindness is a disease that can be prevented, if it is not hereditary, by performing a number of the following preventive measures:

adhere to proper nutrition, eating foods with vitamins, especially A and B2;
avoid the glare of oncoming headlights;
use the welding machine only with a special mask;
Avoid exposure to direct sunlight;
the workplace should be well lit;
do not look at the bright snow;
avoid visiting the solarium;
wear sunglasses as needed;
undergo regular preventive examinations and promptly treat concomitant diseases.

To summarize the above, it should be noted that night blindness is an eye disease that can be completely cured if the patient behaves correctly.

Essential hemeralopia (night blindness) is a twilight vision disorder resulting from diseases of the retina and optic nerve. The main cause of the disease is considered to be vitamin deficiency or hypovitaminosis A, B2, PP. Hemeralopia can be congenital, which cannot be treated, or acquired. It can also develop after measles in childhood, chickenpox. Common cause diseases include malnutrition and anemia, liver disease, exposure to alcohol, bright light. Treatment is symptomatic.

Instructions

If difficulties arise in spatial orientation, impaired adaptation to darkness, narrowing of the field

consult an ophthalmologist. As a rule, preparations of animal origin containing vitamins A, B2, and PP are prescribed.

To treat hemeralopia, use a diet based on the consumption of foods containing essential vitamins. Eating beef is especially beneficial.

Carrots with

Cream or sour cream. It is useful to include daily diet two or three products from the following. These are tomatoes, spinach, green onions, black currants, apricots, gooseberries, cod liver, dairy products, egg yolk, caviar, millet.

Use the recipes traditional medicine, which contribute to the improvement of visual

and retina

Prepare the following herbal collection. Take 2 parts each of leaves and roots of dandelion, cordate linden flowers, blueberry leaves, one part each of leaves

sea buckthorn

and buckwheat

sowing

After grinding, mix the ingredients.

Brew 3 tablespoons of the collection with 750 ml of boiling water. After soaking in a water bath for 15 minutes, leave for half an hour. Strain and drink 200 ml three times a day after meals.

Use for treatment stinging nettle. It is recommended to consume soup with

tops

young plants. During the rest of the year, take nettle infusion. Brew 2 tablespoons of crushed nettle leaves with a glass of boiling water.

After leaving for an hour, strain. Take 1/3 cup three times a day half an hour before meals.

Also use grass - wildflower (chicken

). Brew 5 grams of dry herb with 200 ml of boiling water and leave for 10 minutes, strain. Drink 15 ml three times a day after meals.

Accept fish fat 2 tablespoons three times a day. Course – 3-4

note

Essential hemeralopia is treatable and must be treated. According to statistics, the number of accidents involving drivers suffering from this disease is almost the same as those involving drunken motorists.

Helpful advice

Also include freshly prepared grape juice in your diet, carrot juice, juice from blueberries, sea buckthorn, and sea buckthorn oil.

How to treat night blindness

The congenital type of hemeralopia is practically untreatable, but the others can be successfully combated. For example, if night blindness is the result of some other eye disease, then the main treatment method here will be therapy for the underlying disease. Sometimes it may be necessary surgical intervention (laser correction vision).

The essential type of disease is treated mainly with special diet. The patient should add foods with high content vitamin A, and maintain a healthy daily routine.

Diet for night blindness plays a very important role important role in the treatment of this disease. Be sure to include the following foods in your diet:

Carrot.
Egg yolk.
Tomatoes.
Millet.
Berries.
Butter.
Spinach.
Beef liver or cod liver.

Also, do not forget about vegetables and fruits: peaches, pumpkin juice, green peas, apricots, parsley. To improve the absorption of vitamin A, you need to add foods with vitamin E to your diet: nuts, seeds, broccoli, potatoes.

Eye drops for night blindness

Riboflavin. This is a multicomponent vitamin preparation that contains riboflavin (that is, vitamin B2). This tool It is considered only preventive; it helps to enrich tissues with the necessary amount of oxygen and facilitate the conduction of nerve impulses, especially in the retina. Indicated for night blindness, keratitis, conjunctivitis, iriditis.

Typically, the dosage of riboflavin is as follows: twice a day, the patient instills one drop of the drug into each eye. The duration of therapy can only be prescribed by a doctor.

The product is contraindicated in case of individual intolerance to its components. Among side effects can be distinguished: short-term loss visual acuity, allergies.

Vitamins

Typically, treatment for night blindness is based on increasing intake of human body vitamin A. Usually preparations with this vitamin are prescribed in the following dosage: adults - up to 100 thousand IU of the vitamin per day, children - up to 5 thousand IU of the vitamin per day. You should also simultaneously prescribe medications with vitamins B2 and PP.

Traditional treatment

Try to drink at least a little fish oil three times a day.
Try to add the following foods to your daily diet: carrots, peas, green onions, spinach, black currants, beans, parsley, gooseberries, sea buckthorn.
Drink one mustard seed daily with plenty of water. Gradually increase the dose of grains (up to 20 pieces), and then start decreasing again.

Please note before using traditional methods treatment of night blindness, you should consult your doctor.

Herbal treatment

Infusion of stinking cornflower herb. Take 10 g of raw material, pour one glass of water, leave for 15 minutes, then strain. Take one tablespoon per day (3-4 times) before meals.
Decoction of seed millet. Take one cup of millet, pour two liters of water into an enamel pan, cook until the grain is completely boiled. Use until vision improves.
Decoction of medicinal herbs. Take equal shares of primrose leaves, lingonberries, blackberries, viburnum, forest raspberries, lemon balm and snake knotweed rhizomes (one teaspoon each). Brew the resulting mixture in 0.35 liters of boiling water. Leave for one hour. Take half a glass three times a day.

Surgical treatment

If hemeralopia was caused by myopia, glaucoma, cataracts, then, in some cases, it is difficult to do without surgical treatment. Sometimes refractive surgery is necessary, which is based on the correction of corneal and retinal defects. If night blindness is caused by pigmentary dystrophy, then a transplantation is necessary. Glaucoma or cataracts are treated with lens replacement (laser eye surgery), which, of course, also helps with night blindness.

Night blindness or hemelaropia is a disease with impaired vision in twilight and twilight. That's why this disease also called twilight and night blindness. Is this disease dangerous? What causes it to appear? How does it manifest and how to treat it? Read about this in our article.

Night blindness disease

The disease night blindness develops in humans against the background of a deficiency of vitamin A (retinol), “responsible” for vision. It is found in visual purple, a light-sensitive substance in the human retina. When there is enough vitamin A, then a person sees well. If night blindness develops, vitamin A is in short supply, and it urgently needs to be replenished in order to avoid complete loss of vision. Acquired night blindness in humans is called functional. Functional hemelaropia can develop in the following conditions:

a person suffers from diseases of the retina (for example, retinal detachment, discoloration or inflammatory processes),
macular degenerative processes develop,
a person suffers from myopia, cataracts, glaucoma, traumatic brain injuries and other head injuries.

In addition, an improperly lit workplace, working at a computer, reading under a table lamp, as well as a lack of eye protection from ultraviolet radiation (bright sun at sea or in the mountains) negatively affect vision. People over 40 years of age can also become potential victims of night blindness, since, starting from this age, the metabolic rate in the body decreases, which impairs the nutrition of the retina. This leads to a deterioration in the ability to see in semi-darkness and darkness. Functional hemelaropia is not dangerous, and in most cases it can be successfully treated.

But there is another type of this disease, which is quite dangerous because it develops at the genetic level and cannot be treated. The development of this type of night blindness is determined by the structure of the retina human eye. Normally, the human retina contains special light-sensitive cells - rods and cones. They are present in the retina in a ratio of 18:1. With a decrease in the number of rods in the retina, a person begins to see worse in twilight and darkness, i.e. night blindness develops. And this disease is called so because the retina of a chicken contains only cones, so chickens can distinguish colors well, but see practically nothing in the dark.

Symptoms of night blindness

Symptoms of night blindness do not appear in humans in normal lighting conditions. He can fully perform all tasks: read, write, work on a computer, etc. The disease night blindness makes itself felt only at dusk. A person sees objects blurry, the image loses clarity, sometimes the perception of colors is disrupted, this is especially noticeable on objects of blue color. The behavior of a person suffering from night blindness changes dramatically in conditions of lack of light: coordination of movements is impaired, he becomes more careful.

Night blindness, the symptoms of which we have just described, appears in conditions of vitamin A deficiency in the human body. Night blindness is often accompanied by conjunctivitis, dry skin and mucous membranes. Another symptom of night blindness is keratinization of skin areas on the abdomen and buttocks, as well as brittleness and hair loss, and the appearance of ulcers on the cornea of the eyes. This is especially true for children.

If you notice one or more symptoms of night blindness, contact an ophthalmologist who, using special tests, will determine your field of vision, the reaction of the pupils of your eyes to light, as well as the condition of the eye muscles and the retinal layer. Based on these studies, the doctor will conclude whether the person suffers from hemelaropia or not and prescribe the appropriate treatment.

Treatment of night blindness

Treatment of night blindness, if it is congenital, is, unfortunately, impossible. Therefore, further we will talk about how to recover from functional hemelaropia, i.e. acquired night blindness. If you have been diagnosed with night blindness, treatment will depend on the cause. In order to get rid of night blindness, you need to cure the disease that caused it.

Most often, night blindness is caused by a lack of retinol; accordingly, vitamins for night blindness will be prescribed A and B2, which promote its best absorption. IN severe cases when it is discovered severe shortage vitamins, it is replenished with the help of vitamin complexes. If the situation is not critical, then the patient should follow a diet rich in foods that are a source of vitamin A. These are carrots, cabbage, citrus fruits, vegetables and fruit juices, cheese, milk and dairy products, eggs, cod liver, as well as turkey and beef liver.

It should be noted that night blindness is not a harmless disease. It is fraught with general deterioration of vision or its complete loss. Please note that if you notice a deterioration in vision in only one eye, while the other sees normally in the dark, then this is not night blindness, but some other disease of the visual organs. In this case, you should immediately consult a doctor in order to diagnose and treat the disease in a timely manner.

Besides balanced nutrition To prevent night blindness, protect your eyes from the bright sun at sea and in the mountains by wearing sunglasses and special mountain glasses, correct lighting workplace, as well as taking good care of your health in general.