Anophthalmia
Anophthalmia Classifications
Anophthalmia has three classifications ? primary, secondary and degenerative. Primary Anophthalmia occurs due to complete absence of eye tissues caused by failure of the brain, which is responsible for forming the eye. Secondary Anophthalmia occurs when the eye starts to develop and stops (for some reason), leaving the infant with residual eye tissues that result in extremely tiny eyes which are only visible under close examination. Degenerative Anophthalmia occurs when the eye started to form then slowly degenerate. One cause for this condition is lack of blood supply in the eye.
Anophthalmia Definition
Anophthalmia is the congenital absence of one or both eyes. Its name is derived from the Greek word ?anophthalmos?, meaning ?without eye?. Primary or True Anophthalmia is extremely rare. True Anophthalmia occurs when complete absence of the ocular tissue inside the orbit is diagnosed. When this condition occurs, a small globe becomes present inside the orbital soft tissue, which is usually not visibly in the initial examination. Extreme microphtalmos is more commonly seen.
Anophthalmia Treatment
Early treatments for Anophthalmia include surgery and expanders. It would decrease the cosmetic deformities and orbital asymmetry that develop in Anophthalmia patients.