Retinal Detachment

Retinal detachment is a painless but serious eye condition. It happens when your retina, the layer of tissue at the back of your eye, detaches from the tissues that support it. A detached retina affects your vision and can lead to blindness.

Your retina senses light and sends signals to your brain so you can see. When your retina pulls away from the tissues that support it, it loses its blood supply. The blood vessels in those tissues carry nutrients and oxygen to your retina.

Call your eye care provider or go to the emergency room (ER) right away if you notice:

• More eye floaters than usual.
• Flashes of light
• A shadow in your vision.

These can be symptoms of a detached retina. Don’t wait to see if you feel pain. Your provider will want to start treatment as soon as possible.

Types of retinal detachment

There are three types of retinal detachment:

• Rhegmatogenous: This is the most common type and usually happens as you get older. A small tear in your retina lets the gel-like fluid called vitreous humor travel through the tear and collect behind your retina. The fluid pushes the retina away, detaching it from the back of your eye. As the vitreous shrinks and thins with age, it pulls on the retina, tearing it.
• Tractional: In this type of detached retina, scar tissue on your retina can pull it away from the back of your eye. Diabetes is a common cause of these retinal detachments. Extended periods of high blood sugar can damage blood vessels in your eye and cause scar tissue. The scars and areas of traction (pulling) can get bigger, tugging your retina away from the back of your eye.
• Exudative: This type of retinal detachment happens when fluid builds up behind the retina even though there’s no retinal tear. As the fluid collects, it pushes your retina away from supporting tissue. The main causes of fluid buildup are leaking blood vessels or swelling behind the eye, which can happen from conditions like uveitis (eye inflammation).

How common is retinal detachment?

Estimates for the incidence of retinal detachment vary. (The incidence is the number of new cases in a set period of time, usually a year.) One figure estimates incidence in the U.S. at 1 in 10,000 people. Another study estimates the annual risk of rhegmatogenous retinal detachment, the most common type, at 6.3 to 17.9 per 100,000 people.