Zimbabwe Optometric Association

05/05/2025

Diabetic macular edema(DME):
▪️Chronic hyperglycemia-related accumulation of advanced glycated end products disrupts the blood–retina barrier (BRB), leading to endothelial cell junction breakdown and pericyte loss.
▪️The inner BRB is composed of endothelial cells in the retinal capillaries, while the outer BRB is composed of retinal pigment epithelium cells.
▪️When the BRB is altered, interstitial fluid is accumulated within and underneath the retina through leakage of molecules dependent on intact cell-to-cell junctions.
▪️ Risk Factors:
➖Risk factors for DME and DR are similar.
➖These include a longer DM duration, poor control of DM with elevated glycolated hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) levels, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia.
➖Other secondary risk factors include impaired renal function and the use of thiazolidinediones.
▪️Photo: A: Schematic diagram of DME.
➖Microaneurysms, or damaged capillaries, resulting from the breakdown of the BRB leak fluid to the extracellular space, resulting in a swollen retina.
➖Resorption of DME is dependent on the adjacent capillaries and RPE.
➖Resorption of fluid may leave behind lipoprotein residues, seen here as exudates.
▪️B: OCT image of DME.
Credit: www.eyewiki.org

24/04/2025

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23/03/2025

World Optometry day. Eyes to the future. Improve global wellness

20/03/2025

17/03/2025

The world is worth seeing 🤓 Visit one of our registered Optometrist to diagnose and manage eye conditions

26/02/2025

Women and girls are:
➡️ 8% more likely to be blind,
➡️ 15% more likely to have moderate to severe vision impairment,
➡️ 12% more likely to have mild vision impairment, and
➡️ 11% more likely to have near vision impairment.
Why? There are a number of factors. Women have a longer life expectancy, so that increases the risk of many age-related eye conditions. Women are also at greater risk of contracting trachoma, a contagious eye infection that can cause vision loss, and in many parts of the world they have less access to eye health services.
Source: https://www.iapb.org/learn/vision-atlas/inequality-in-vision-loss/gender/

20/02/2025

The woman thought she had just lost the lenses

23/01/2025

The tumor was removed using a flexible tube and camera through her eye socket. https://link.ie.social/OQYtib

26/11/2024

Fellowship processes, benefits, and step by step guide to registration as a candidate explained by African Fellows of the American Academy of Optometry who have walked the walk.

Don't miss this very first critical Webinar if becoming a fellow in 2025 is in your plan.

Reach out to them for further information.

01/11/2024

A man who survived a devastating electrical accident has received the world's first eye and face transplant! Read more about this remarkable procedure, performed by a surgical team from NYU Langone Health is laying the groundwork for new possibilities for the future: https://bit.ly/40wHdjD