Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP) Eye Condition

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Table of Contents

Description of Retinitis Pigmentosa

Description of Retinitis Pigmentosa

The parts of the visual system affected

The condition is hereditary (Hamel, 2006).
It starts with one eye and later affects the other one with time.
Many cases of RP involve same family members.
Inheritance of RP can occur through genes (both recessive and dominant genes) or sex-linked genes (Daiger, Bowne and Sullivan, 2007).
There are few cases with no family history.
Diagnosis may occur in teenage years, but the condition may be present at birth.

Causes of RP

Increasing difficulty in night vision.
Decreased vision in low lights.
Difficulties in peripheral vision (side vision).
Peripheral vision leads to tunnel vision.
Tunnel vision results from a loss of visual acuity in the fields of peripheral visual, but retains visual acuity at the center.
Night blindness develops before tunnel vision (the difference may be several years or decades) (Koenekoop, 2003).
A loss of central acuity occurs in later stages (Vorvick, 2012; Hartong, Berson and Dryja, 2006).

Symptoms and signs of RP

Signs and tests

RP affects peripheral and central acuity leading to loss of vision (Berson, 2007).
Patients show cataracts and swollen retina at early ages.
Cataracts are removable.
Other conditions may exhibit similar symptoms like RP:
- Friedreichs ataxia;
- Usher syndrome;
- Laurence-Moon syndrome;
- Myotonic dystrophy.

Effects RP on the visual system

RP has no known treatment.
Sunglasses may protect the retina.
Antioxidants treatment with high doses of vitamin A palmitatets may reduce the rate of vision loss (Vorvick, 2012).
High doses of vitamin A can cause liver challenges (Vorvick, 2012).
Emerging treatments for RP include the use of omega-3 fatty acid (MedicineNet, Inc, 2013).
Scientists have invented microchip implants for RP. They act like microscopic video camera inside the retina.
This technology is in early stages of development.
Complete blindness may be rare.
RP normally progress but at a slow pace.
Regular visits to low-vision specialists are necessary for vision loss adaptation.

Common treatments and medications

Genetic testing may predict risks of RP in children.
Genetic counseling may help in determining whether children will suffer RP.
It is important to visit health care facilities when one experiences night vision loss or when other symptoms emerge.

Prevention of RP

Summary

Berson, L. (2007). Long-term visual prognoses in patients with retinitis pigmentosa: the Ludwig von Sallmann lecture. Exp. Eye Res., 85(1), 714.
Daiger, P., Bowne, J., and Sullivan, L. (2007). Perspective on genes and mutations causing retinitis pigmentosa. Arch Ophthalmol, 125(2), 151-8.
Hamel, C. (2006). Retinitis pigmentosa. Orphanet J Rare Dis., 1, 40.
Hartong, T., Berson, L., and Dryja, P. (2006). Retinitis pigmentosa. Lancet 368(9549), 1795809.
Koenekoop, R. (2003). Novel RPGR mutations with distinct retinitis pigmentosa phenotypes in French-Canadian families. American Journal of ophthalmology 136(4), 67868.
MedicineNet, Inc. (2013). Retinitis Pigmentosa. Web.
Sieving, P., and Caruso, R. (2008). Retinitis pigmentosa and related disorders. In M. Yanoff and S. Duker (Eds.), Ophthalmology. (3rd ed.) (p. 10). Maryland Heights, Mo: Mosby Elsevier.
Vorvick, L. (2012). Retinitis pigmentosa. Web.