A retinal detachment is a serious eye condition that requires urgent medical treatment. Without prompt intervention, it can cause permanent sight loss in the affected eye.
For many patients, early diagnosis and treatment can help preserve their vision. When a retinal detachment is missed, or there is an avoidable delay in diagnosis or treatment, the consequences can be life changing for patients and their families.
What is a detached retina?
A detached retina occurs where the retina, the light-sensitive tissue at the back of the eye, detaches from its supporting layers. This impacts vision in the affected eye and can lead to permanent vision loss.
Retinal detachment is usually painless and presents with changes in vision in the affected eye.
The symptoms of retinal detachment can include:
- blurred vision
- flashes of light in one or both eyes
- a ‘curtain’ or dark shadow moving across the field of vision
- worsening peripheral vision
- the sudden appearance of dots or lines (‘floaters’) in the field of vision
Risk factors for retinal detachment include:
- significant short sightedness (mypoia)
- eye trauma
- a family history of retinal detachment
- older age
- previous cataract or laser eye surgery
If not diagnosed and treated promptly, a detached retina can result in serious deterioration of vision or permanent vision loss in the affected eye.
How retinal detachments are diagnosed?
If a retinal detachment is suspected, a specialist will typically:
- ask about your symptoms
- dilate your pupils to visualise the back of your eye
- examine the retina using bright light and special lenses, looking for any for retinal tears, holes, bleeding, or areas where the retina has detached.
- perform an ultrasound scan if needed
Treatment options for retinal detachment
Treatment depends on whether there is a retinal tear (where the retina is damaged but has not yet completely detached) or the retina has already detached.
Some retinal tears or holes can be treated with laser therapy or cryotherapy (freezing treatment) to seal the tear and reduce the risk of a retinal detachment developing. Once the retina has detached, surgery will usually be required to reattach it.
In 90% of surgeries, the retina is successfully attached after one operation, although some patients require further surgery.
However, even in cases where reattachment is successful, patients may still not regain the same level of vision in the eye. The risk of this occurring increases the longer the retina remains detached.
When diagnosis is delayed or missed
Retinal detachment is a time-sensitive condition. A delay may allow the detachment to progress, making it harder to repair.
Loss of vision has devastating consequences for individuals and their loved ones and impacts every aspect of a person’s life. Where sight loss has resulted from negligent medical care, compensation can help meet the additional financial and practical needs created by the injury.
How Tees can help
In some cases of retinal detachment, questions may arise about whether opportunities to diagnose or treat the condition earlier were missed. Examples might include:
- a failure to appropriately investigate reported symptoms
- a failure to make an appropriate referral for specialist assessment
- an avoidable delay in treatment after a retinal detachment has been identified.
Not every delayed or missed diagnosis of retinal detachment will amount to medical negligence. However, if you are concerned that warning signs were missed, you were not referred for specialist assessment promptly, or that there was an avoidable delay in your treatment, it may be appropriate to seek specialist legal advice.
At Tees, our medical negligence team has experience in claims involving eye injuries, sight loss and retinal detachment. We can review the circumstances of your treatment, help establish whether the care you received was appropriate and where there is evidence of negligence, advise you about pursuing a claim for compensation.
