About Macular Puckers
The macula is the small area at the center of the eye’s retina that allows you to read and see fine details clearly. The macula normally lies flat against the wall of the eye, like wallpaper on a wall. A macular pucker occurs when a membrane, like cellophane, covers the surface of the macula. Often, these membranes remain completely flat and do not cause vision problems. However, sometimes the membrane contracts on the surface of the retina, causing it to wrinkle or pucker.
Macular Pucker Symptoms
Symptoms of a macular pucker range from mild to severe and may involve one or both eyes. These symptoms include blurry central vision, distorted or wavy vision (straight lines seem crooked or bent), difficulty reading, or gray spot in central vision.
Diagnosis and Tests for Macular Puckers
A macular pucker is diagnosed by your eye doctor and can be further evaluated with special tests like optical coherence tomography (OCT) or fluorescein angiography.
Macular Pucker Treatment
For mild symptoms, no treatment may be necessary. Changing your eyeglasses prescription may improve vision. For more severe symptoms, vitrectomy surgery can be performed as an outpatient procedure in an operating room. During surgery, the vitreous gel that fills the eye is removed and replaced with a clear fluid. Tiny instruments are used to gently remove the membrane off the retina’s surface. After the tissue is gone, the macula usually flattens and vision slowly improves, though it usually does not return all the way to normal.
FAQs
What causes a macular pucker?
Macular puckers are associated with several eye conditions. The most common cause is due to a posterior vitreous separation in which the vitreous gel that fills the eye pulls away from the retina, leading to scar tissue on the macula. Macular puckers can also develop following a torn or detached retina, uveitis (inflammation inside the eye), diabetic retinopathy, or trauma.
Can a macular pucker go untreated?
Yes, for mild symptoms, no treatment may be necessary. If symptoms are more severe, you may need surgery.
Can you prevent a macular pucker?
Since a macular pucker is often associated other retinal conditions, the best preventative defense is to have routine eye exams that can screen for the development of retinal conditions like Diabetic Retinopathy, which can then lead to a Macular Pucker.
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