Night blindness, or the inability to see at night, is generally a symptom of some serious vision issues. Also known as nyctalopia, it’s important to get your eyes checked regularly to ensure everything is functioning properly. If you notice you can’t see as well in dim light while driving or adjusting from outdoors to indoors, you might have night blindness.
Symptoms of night blindness include reduced contrast sensitivity, difficulty seeing people, places, or things outdoors at night or in a dim-lit area, trouble driving at night, excessive squinting at night, or difficulty adjusting from darkness to light.
Here are some underlying factors that can cause night blindness:
- Vitamin A: this vital vitamin helps keep your cornea (thin layer in front of your eye) clear. It’s also an essential component of rhodopsin, a protein that lets you see in low-light conditions. Though uncommon in North America, deficiency of Vitamin A can induce night-blindness.
- Glaucoma: the actual eye disease itself, along with the medications used to treat it, can cause night blindness. Glaucoma is associated with pressure build-up in the eye that damages the optic nerve.
- Cataracts: a buildup of protein clouds the eye’s lens, which leads to impaired vision at night or in poor lighting conditions.
- Diabetic retinopathy: damage to the eyes’ blood vessels and nerves can result in vision loss, including challenges with nighttime sight.
- Myopia: also known as nearsightedness, makes distant objects appear blurry; patients describe a starburst effect around night lights.
- Keratoconus: this irregularly shaped cornea can result in blurry vision and sensitivity to light which can worsen at night.
- Usher Syndrome: a genetic condition that causes both hearing and vision loss, night blindness is also an effect.
- Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP): this progressive genetic eye disease can be associated with other conditions and lead to night blindness and peripheral vision loss.
After a proper diagnosis, treatments for night blindness can be mitigated by your eye care professional. There is no proven way to prevent night blindness.
If you are experiencing night blindness, we can help. Contact us and schedule an appointment today.
Rohr Eye & Laser Center offers the most advanced technology available to provide personalized and extraordinary care to our patients. Whether your goal is to maintain or improve your natural vision, we are here to help you. Call us at 877-579-0202 or visit https://www.michiganlasik.com/ to schedule an appointment today.
Written by the digital marketing staff at Creative Programs & Systems: www.cpsmi.com.