BIOLOGY INVESTIGATORY PROJECT

TOPIC: EYE DISEASE

Submitted by
P. NIRMAL ANANDH

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 Acknowledgement

INTRODUCTION
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1. Age related macular
degeneration 5

2. Colour blindness.
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3. Far sightedness.
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4. Graves eye disease.

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5. Usher’s syndrome.
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6. Conclusion.

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Bibliography
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INTRODUCTION:

Eye diseases are conditions that affect any part of your eye, and
include conditions that affect the structures immediately around
your eyes. These conditions can be acute (meaning they develop
quickly) or chronic (meaning they develop more slowly and last a
long time).

Your eyeball Itself is where most eye diseases happen, but it isn’t
the only place. Eye diseases also include conditions that can affect
your eye muscles, eye socket, eyelids, or the skin and muscles
immediately around your eyes.

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2. Age-Related Macular Degeneration (AMD)

At a glance: AMD
Early Symptoms: None
Later Symptoms: Loss of the central vision you need to see
details straight ahead, blurry or wavy areas in your central
vision
Diagnosis: Dilated eye exam
Treatment: Dietary supplements (vitamins and minerals),
injections, photodynamic therapy (injections and treatment.

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What is AMD?
• Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is an eye
disease that can blur your central vision. It happens
when aging causes damage to the macula — the part of
the eye that controls sharp, straight-ahead vision. The
macula is part of the retina (the light-sensitive tissue at
the back of the eye).

AMD is a common condition — it’s a leading cause of

vision loss for older adults. AMD doesn’t cause complete
blindness, but losing your central vision can make it harder
to see faces, read, drive, or do close-up work like cooking or
fixing things around the house.

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 • AMD happens very slowly in some people and faster in
others. If you have early AMD, you may not notice vision
loss for a long time. That’s why it’s important to get
regular eye exams to find out if you have AMD.

What are the types and stages of AMD?

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There are 2 types of AMD: dry and wet.

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 Dry AMD (also called atrophic AMD). This is when the
macula gets thinner with age. Dry AMD happens in 3
stages: early, intermediate, and late. It usually
progresses slowly over several years. There’s no
treatment for late dry AMD, but you can find ways to
make the most of your remaining vision. And if you have
late dry AMD in only 1 eye, you can take steps to protect
your other eye.

• Wet AMD (also called advanced neovascular AMD), is a

less common type of late AMD that usually causes faster
vision loss. Any stage of dry AMD can turn into wet AMD
— but wet AMD is always late stage. It happens when
abnormal blood vessels grow in the back of the eye and
damage the macula. The good news is that treatment
options are available for wet AMD.

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Are you at risk for AMD?
Your risk for AMD increases as you get older. People age 55
and older are more likely to have AMD. The risk for AMD is
also higher for people who:

• Have a family history of AMD

• Are Caucasian
• Smoke
If you’re at risk for AMD because of your age, family
history, or other factors, it’s important to get regular eye
exams.

How can you lower your risk for AMD?

• Quit smoking — or don’t start

• Get regular physical activity
• Maintain healthy blood pressure and cholesterol levels

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• Eat healthy foods, including leafy green vegetables and
fish
What’s the treatment for AMD?
• If you have intermediate AMD in 1 or both eyes, special
dietary supplements (vitamins and minerals) may be
able to stop it from turning into late AMD. If you have
late AMD in only 1 eye, these supplements may slow
down AMD in your other eye.
• If you have wet AMD, there are other treatments that
may be able to stop further vision loss:
• Medicines called anti-VEGF drugs that the doctor injects
in your eye
• Photodynamic therapy (PDT), a combination of
injections and laser treatment

• There’s currently no treatment for late dry AMD • —

but researchers are hard at work looking for treatment
options. One NEI research team found a way to treat dry

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AMD in animals using stem cells. Researchers are now
testing whether this treatment is safe for people. This
research could lead to a treatment for dry AMD in the
future. Learn how to participate in a clinical trial on
stem cells.

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3. COLOUR BLINDNESS

Symptoms: Trouble telling the difference between colors

Diagnosis: Colour vision test
Treatment: Special glasses and contacts, visual aids

What is color blindness?

If you have color blindness (color vision deficiency), it means
you see colors differently than most people. Most of the
time, color vision deficiency makes it hard to tell the
difference between certain colors.

Usually, color vision deficiency runs in families. There’s no

cure, but special glasses and contact lenses can help people
see differences between colors. Most people who have
color vision deficiency don’t have problems with everyday
activities.

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What are the types of color vision deficiency?
The most common type of color vision deficiency
makes it hard to tell the difference between red and
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 green. Another type makes blue and yellow look the
same. In rare cases, people have complete color vision
deficiency, which means they don’t see color at all.

What are the symptoms of color vision deficiency?

• The main symptom of color vision deficiency is not
seeing colors the way most people do. If you have
color vision deficiency, you may have trouble seeing:
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• The difference between colors
• How bright colors are
• Different shades of colors

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People with very serious cases of color vision deficiency
might have other symptoms, too — like quick side-toside
eye movements (nystagmus) or sensitivity to light.

Am I at risk for color vision deficiency?

Men have a much higher risk than women for color vision
deficiency. You’re also more likely to have color vision
deficiency if you:

• Have a family history of color vision deficiency

• Have certain eye diseases
• Have certain health problems, like diabetes,
Alzheimer’s disease, or multiple sclerosis (MS)
• Take certain medicines
• Are white

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 What causes color vision deficiency?
• Retinal detachment (when the retina is pulled away
from its normal position at the back of the eye)
• Eye injuries caused by lasers
• Some kinds of brain tumors — especially ones that
affect the optic nerve or put pressure on the brain
• Radiation treatments
• Color vision may also get worse as you get older —
often because of cataracts (cloudy areas in the lens
of the eye).

What’s the treatment for color vision deficiency?

• There’s no cure for color vision deficiency that’s
passed down in families (inherited), but most
people adjust to it. Children with color vision
deficiency may need help with some classroom
activities, and adults with color vision deficiency
may need accommodations to do jobs that rely on

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 telling the difference between colors, like being a
graphic designer.
• If color vision deficiency is causing problems with
everyday tasks, talk with your eye doctor about
available options, like:

Glasses and contacts. Special contact lenses and eyeglasses

may help people who have color vision deficiency tell the
difference between colors. They work by increasing the
contrast between colors so they’re easier to tell apart.

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Visual aids. Apps let people take photos with a phone or
tablet and then tap on part of the photo to find out what
color it is.
What is the latest research on color vision deficiency?
Research studies suggest that gene therapies
(treatments that change genes in a target location) are
promising for a severe type of color vision deficiency.

3. Farsightedness (Hyperopia)
At a glance: Farsightedness
Symptoms: Trouble seeing things up close, eye strain
Diagnosis: Eye exam
Treatment: Eyeglasses, contact lenses, surgery

What is farsightedness?
Farsightedness is a refractive error that makes nearby
objects look blurry. It happens when the shape of the eye

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makes light focus behind the retina (a light sensitive layer
of tissue at the back of your eye), instead of on it.
What are the symptoms of farsightedness?
The most common symptoms of farsightedness are:

• Trouble seeing things up close

• Eye strain (when your eyes feel tired or sore)
• Headaches — especially when reading

Children with severe farsightedness may also be at higher

risk for other eye problems, like crossed eyes or
amblyopia (lazy eye).

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 What causes farsightedness?
Farsightedness happens when your eyeball grows too short
from front to back, or when there are problems with the
shape of your cornea (clear front layer of the eye) or lens
(an inner part of the eye that helps the eye focus).

These problems make light focus behind the retina, instead

of on it — and that makes nearby objects look blurry.

What’s the treatment for farsightedness?

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The most common treatments for farsightedness are
eyeglasses or contact lenses. Your eye doctor will
prescribe the right lenses to help you see as clearly as
possible.

Doctors can also use surgery to treat farsightedness in

adults. The surgery changes the shape of your cornea so
that it can focus light clearly.

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4. Graves’ Eye Disease
At a glance: Graves’ Eye Disease
Symptoms: Bulging eyes, dry eyes, double vision, puffy
eyelids, eyelids that pull back more than usual
Diagnosis: Eye exam
Treatment: Eye drops, medicine, surgery
What is Graves’ eye disease?
Graves’ eye disease happens when swelling around the
eyes makes them bulge out. It’s caused by Graves’
disease, and it’s also called GED, Graves’ ophthalmopathy,
or thyroid eye disease (TED).

Graves’ eye disease is often mild and may go away on its

own. It doesn’t usually cause vision loss, but it may cause
double vision and other symptoms.

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What are the symptoms of Graves’ eye disease?
• Dry, gritty, red, or irritated eyes
• Puffy eyelids
• Eyelids that pull back more than usual or don’t close
all the way
• Double vision
• Sensitivity to light
• Eye pain or pressure
• Trouble moving your eyes when you look around
• Graves’ eye disease usually affects both eyes, but you
may only notice symptoms in 1 eye.
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• Symptoms usually last 1 to 2 years and often go away
on their own.

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What causes Graves’ eye disease?
Sometimes Graves’ disease makes the immune system
attack the muscles and other tissues around the eyes.
This causes swelling behind the eye sockets, which
makes the eyes bulge out.

Researchers aren’t sure what causes Graves’ disease.

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What’s the treatment for Graves’ eye disease? If you
have Graves’ disease, you’ll need treatment for your
thyroid problems. Sometimes thyroid treatments help
with Graves’ eye disease — but people often need
separate treatments for their eye problems.

Over-the-counter eye drops. The most common

treatment for dry or irritated eyes is a type of eye
drops called artificial tears. You can get these without
a prescription. There are also over-thecounter gels
and ointments that may help your eyes feel better.

Prescription medicines. If you have a lot of swelling

behind your eyes, your doctor may prescribe

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 steroids(like prednisone) or other medicines (like
rituximab) to help reduce swelling. Your doctor may
also recommend a new medicine just for Graves’ eye
disease called Tepezza (teprotumumab).

Eyeglasses. If you have double vision, special prescription

lenses (called a prism prescription) can help fix double
vision and help you see more clearly.

Surgery. If Graves’ eye disease affects your vision, your

doctor may recommend a surgery called orbital
decompression. This surgery makes the eye socket bigger
to ease pressure on the optic nerve and help the eye
move back to the correct position. If your eyelids are
pulling back too much, doctors may also recommend
eyelid surgery to return your eyelids to a more normal
position.

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Radiation. In some cases, doctors may treat Graves’ eye
disease with radiation. This treatment helps reduce
swelling in the muscles and tissues around the eyes.

5. Usher Syndrome

At a glance: Usher Syndrome

Early Symptoms: Hearing loss or deafness (usually

from birth)

Later Symptoms: Loss of night vision and side

(peripheral) vision

Diagnosis: Dilated eye exam, hearing test, balance

test, genetic test

Treatment: Vision aids, vision rehabilitation, hearing

aids or cochlear implants

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 What is Usher syndrome?

Usher syndrome is a rare genetic disease that affects

both hearing and vision. It causes deafness or hearing
loss and an eye disease called retinitis pigmentosa
(RP). Sometimes, it also causes problems with
balance.

People who have Usher syndrome are born with it,

but they usually get diagnosed as children or
teenagers. There’s no cure for Usher syndrome, but
treatments can help people manage their vision,
hearing, and balance problems

What are the types of Usher syndrome?

There are 3 types of Usher syndrome, and each type
causes a different mix of health problems.

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People with type 1 have:

• Profound hearing loss (only able to hear very loud

sounds) or deafness at birth

• Loss of night vision by age 10, with severe vision

loss by midlife

• Balance problems, including trouble sitting up and

walking

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People with type 2 have:

• Moderate to severe hearing loss in early

childhood

• Loss of night vision by teenage years, with severe

vision loss by midlife

• Normal balance

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People with type 3 have:

• Normal hearing at birth, with hearing loss starting

in childhood

• Loss of night vision by teenage years, with severe

vision loss by midlife

• Normal balance

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 Types 1 and 2 are the most common.

What are the symptoms of Usher syndrome? The

main symptoms of Usher syndrome are deafness or
hearing loss and RP. Different types of Usher
syndrome cause different symptoms, but everyone
with Usher syndrome develops RP.
Signs of RP in children include:

Trouble moving around in the dark

Taking longer to adjust to lighting changes
Tripping over objects in their path
In adults, RP can make it difficult to do daily tasks like
walking, driving, and reading.

How will my child’s doctor check for Usher syndrome?

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The doctor may do tests, including:

Electroretinography (ERG). An ERG lets the eye doctor

check how well the retina responds to light.
Optical coherence tomography (OCT). This test uses light
waves to take a detailed picture of the retina.
Videonystagmography. This test checks for eye
movements you can’t control, which can be a sign of
balance problems.
Fundus autofluorescence (FAF) imaging. In this test, the eye
doctor uses blue light to take a picture of the retina.
Hearing tests. The doctor will check for signs of hearing loss
or deafness.
Genetic testing. Your child’s doctor may suggest a genetic
test to confirm the diagnosis of Usher syndrome.

What’s the treatment for Usher syndrome?

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There’s no cure for Usher syndrome. But the good news is
early treatment can help people with Usher syndrome make
the most of their hearing and vision. That’s why it’s
important to tell your child’s doctor right away if you notice
symptoms of Usher syndrome.

CONCLUSION
There is a need to increase awareness and knowledge of
common eye diseases for the prevention, early treatment,
and regarding access to available eye care services in these
regions. This may enable minimization of visual impairment
and cost of eye care.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY
https://www.nei.nih.gov/

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