Retina bleed

Hi, just wondered if anyone else has had something similar to hopefully put my mind at rest.

I’m 57, very myopic. I had retinal detachments in both eyes 27 years ago and my eyesight has been good, considering.

At Christmas I had a couple of bangs on the head. The first one was me walking along a pavement reading my phone and I whacked my head into a metal post. I had a very sore little bump for about a week. Only a couple days later I banged the top of my head on the garage door. That hurt.... and just a few days afterwards I noticed a distortion in my vision in my right - weakest - eye. The amsler grid confirmed this. I went to see an eye doctor straight away. He dilated me and checked for retinal detachment. He said I had a small bleed on the retina which was the reason for my visual distortion. I can actually see in certain light a little round spot in the place where I get the distortion. The doctor was abrupt and wouldn’t answer any questions. I’ve therefore not much in the way of trust in him. He said I’d likely had a pvd. I wondered if it could be the head traumas ? He wanted to wait and watch and call me back for another appointment in 4-6 weeks.

After nearly 3 weeks I’m not seeing any improvement in my sight, the distortion is very much still there. The amsler grid shows a circular brownish blob in the area of my distortion. Is this macular degeneration? I’m terrified. Can anyone help or advise ?

[springcross]

I think I would be tempted to go to your eye hospital A & E. I don't see the point in waiting any longer even though it doesn't seem to be getting any worse, as the point is, it's not getting any better either. Good luck and please let us know how you get on. x

[Brode]

I have macular degeneration and have had 2 bleeds which made me lose the sight in the affected eye. My Dr gave me Eylea injections and the bleed was fixed and sight returned.

[Becky_MacularSociety Partner]

Good Afternoon Cbrit,

Do you have your next appointment date with the consultant? If not, it is worth chasing up to ensure you will be seen soon.

Your eye doctor stated there was a bleed on the retina, this doesn't mean AMD as it depends where on the retina the bleed is. An Amsler Grid is guide to help you know to see an optician to see what is the cause of visual distortions, it doesn't necessarily indicate wet amd and could be a few different reasons for the distortion which an eye doctor can look at and identify,

If it is PVD, there is, no treatment, however symptoms should improve over time. This is because the vitreous does not need to be attached to the retina to see well, treatment for PVD is not needed.

However if you are concerned about your vision, you can go to A+E as others have suggested to be seen sooner to check on the health of your eye

All the best,

Becky

Advice and Information

Macular Society

[e-mail]

0300 3030 111

[Hidden in reply to Becky_MacularSociety]

Thank- you for your replies. I’ve just come out of A&E and after an Oct scan I was told that the macula is fine. No degeneration. So the brown blob is a bleed that will go away ... they couldn’t specify when. Of course I’m relieved but also still worried about how long the bleed will take to go.. any ideas ??

[Becky_MacularSociety Partner in reply to Hidden]

Good Afternoon Cbrit,

It may take several weeks for the blood to be reabsorbed and to fully go, however this can be checked routinely by the specialist at the hospital who can check on your eye's progress.

Thanks

Becky

[Hidden]

Thank-you Becky for the info. It’s really heartening to receive such support at a time of worry. My eyes are not the best. I have atrophy and areas of scar tissue from my retina op so I am always sensitive to changes. Reading posts on this site puts it all into perspective. I should be thankful for the sight I have. Take care and stay safe x

[Biggin]

Glad you went to get it checked out. I,too, had a bleed in my right eye and had to have surgery yesterday to remove the blood from the back of the eye. I had to have a gas bubble injected, so with that need to have my head down for the next week. Depending on your bleed it could take weeks to months for your body to absorb completely. Good Luck!

[Hidden]

Oh Biggin. I do hope you make a full recovery. Was the cause of yours pvd ? Best wishes to you.

[ANGIEIRISH]

Go straight to A & E with anything that looks like a bleed. Meantime, ring the Macular Society for advice, they are very good and will give you excellent advice, even give you the phone number of a doctor to deal with the problem over the phone.

[Hidden]

Thank-you Angieirish. The bleed was on my macula above my central vision. The doctor was confident it was down to vitreous traction. There was no retinal detachment. He thoroughly examined me and then sent me for an Oct scan that confirmed his findings. I am worried as he was so brash with his diagnosis. I asked him if I had amd and he said no. I am still convinced it was down to the head injuries I sustained two days in a row only three days before I noticed this issue. It can’t be a coincidence surely ? The A&E nurse and doctor said it also wasn’t amd and told me to go back to my optician for monitoring. I am still very worried. Does a macula bleed always mean wet amd ? Is this the start ? I am not diabetic and in otherwise very good health. Low blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar. I eat a plain healthy diet. No alcohol, no smoking, rarely any processed food. I walk at least 3 miles everyday. I have no idea what else I can do... as I have said I am thankful for the sight I have. There is no one in my family on either side with eye problems of any nature.

[Hidden]

I’m also getting very neurotic and have convinced myself that I could have CNVM. Would this have been obvious on an OCT scan ?