Eye Disease Diagnosis & Management

Your Eye Health Matters

Eye care is about managing what you can and can’t see about your eyes.

Using modern techniques and practices, our team takes a detailed look at your eye health to search for signs of eye diseases and conditions that could affect your vision. Our compassionate approach can help you understand more about your eyes and what you may need to preserve your vision.

Start your eye care journey today with Rutland’s home of eye care, Rutland Optometry.

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How We Can Help

Regular comprehensive eye exams are the key to detecting eye diseases and conditions before they affect your vision. Many of these issues may develop without any noticeable symptoms, so it’s up to our team to use modern eye care technology to spot these issues.

Some of the tools we use include:

Fundus photography and optical coherence tomography for detecting issues that affect the retina, like age-related macular degeneration and diabetic eye disease.
Non-contact tonometry and Goldmann applanation tonometry for measuring your intraocular pressure levels and detecting diseases like glaucoma.

Please let us know if you have any questions about our technology and how we may use them during your eye exam. We want your eye exam to be as relaxing as it is comprehensive, so we’ll be happy to answer any questions you may have!

Common Eye Diseases & Conditions

Everybody’s eye health is different, but there are a few different common eye diseases we may look for during your eye exam.

We’ll confirm your personal, family, and eye health history during the exam to help us orientate the eye exam to best suit your needs. As you age, you may have a higher chance of developing an eye disease, so we recommend having regular eye exams every 2 years until you’re 65, and annually after that.

Glaucoma

Glaucoma is a group of diseases that affect the optic nerve. Most types of glaucoma affect the optic nerve by raising your intraocular pressure (IOP). However, other types of glaucoma can develop without changing your IOP levels.

The most common versions of glaucoma are:

Open-angle glaucoma, which occurs when your IOP levels rise, but your eye’s drainage angle remains open. Open-angle glaucoma usually occurs slowly, and you may not notice symptoms until you’ve already experienced permanent vision loss.
Angle-closure glaucoma, which occurs when your IOP levels rise after your drainage angle closes. Angle-closure glaucoma can lead to sudden symptoms like eye pain, nausea, redness, and vision loss. We consider this situation as an eye emergency that requires immediate attention.
Normal-tension glaucoma, which is a unique version of glaucoma that affects your optic nerve without raising your IOP levels. However, it’s possible to detect normal-tension glaucoma by observing your optic nerve during an eye exam.

Age-Related Macular Degeneration

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is one of the most common eye diseases affecting adults over 55. This disease affects the macula, a part of your retina responsible for providing your central vision.

As the macula deteriorates, it can impair your ability to read, drive, see fine details, and recognize faces. There are 2 types of AMD:

Dry AMD, which slowly thins the macula as you age. Some research suggests that yellowish deposits of lipids known as drusen can develop under your macula as you age, leading to AMD symptoms.
Wet AMD, which is less common than dry AMD, but is responsible for 90% of all AMD-related vision loss. Wet AMD can occur when abnormal blood vessels develop and leak fluids into your macula as you age.

Diabetic Eye Disease

Diabetes is a health concern for millions of Canadians, and it could increase the risk of developing an eye disease.

Diabetes-related eye diseases like diabetic retinopathy and diabetic macular degeneration could lead to permanent vision loss if they aren’t detected and managed with the help of an eye doctor.

Please visit our Diabetic Eye Exams page for more information on diabetes and how it can affect your eye health.

Cataracts

Cataracts are one of the most common eye conditions around the globe and a leading cause of blindness. As you grow older, your eye’s clear crystalline lens becomes more rigid, causing it to develop a hazy, milky colour that could affect the quality of your vision.

Early cataracts could cause refractive errors that can be corrected using eyeglasses or contacts. However, in more advanced cases, you may need to have cataract surgery to restore your sight.

We’re Local

Our office is conveniently located on Highway 33 in the heart of Rutland neighbourhood of Kelowna, just minutes from Highway 97. Find us inside Willow Park Mall, with ample parking just outside our doors. Come visit our eye doctors in Kelowna today!