Macular Edema (Eye-Disorder) Disability Insurance Benefits Claim
How can disability insurance attorneys Dell & Schaefer assist you?
As disability attorneys, Dell & Schaefer have represented numerous long term disability claimants that have been unable to work as a result of macular edema. Disability Attorneys Dell & Schaefer have an expansive understanding of the significant restrictions and limitations that a person suffering with macular edema must live with on a daily basis.
We have worked closely with top physicians in order to sufficiently satisfy a disability carrier’s threshold of evidence necessary to prove that a client is disabled by suffering macular edema.
Not everyone suffering from suffering macular edema qualifies for long-term disability benefits; therefore the medical records of each client must be reviewed to determine the level of restrictions.
We welcome the opportunity to discuss your long-term disability claim.
You can contact us here.
What is macular edema?
Macular edema occurs when fluid and protein deposits collect on or under the macula of the eye, a yellow central area of the retina, causing it to thicken and swell. The swelling may distort a person’s central vision, as the macula is near the center of the retina at the back of the eyeball. This area holds tightly packed cones that provide sharp, clear central vision to enable a person to see form, color, and detail that is directly in the line of sight.
There are two types of macular edema; diabetic macular edema and cystoid macular edema.
Diabetic macular edema is the swelling of the retina in diabetes mellitus due to leaking of fluid from blood vessels within the macula. The macula is the central portion of the retina, a small area rich in cones, the specialized nerve endings that detect color and upon which daytime vision depends.
As macular edema develops, blurring occurs in the middle or just to the side of the central visual field. Visual loss from diabetic macular edema can progress over a period of months and make it impossible to focus clearly.
Macular edema is common in those suffering from diabetes. The lifetime risk for diabetics to develop macular edema is about 10%. The condition is closely associated with the degree of diabetic retinopathy (retinal disease). Hypertension (high blood pressure) and fluid retention also increase the hydrostatic pressure within capillaries which drives fluid from within the vessels into the retina. A common cause of fluid retention in diabetes is kidney disease with loss of protein in the urine (proteinuria).
Diabetic macular edema is classified into focal and diffuse types. This is an important difference because the two types differ in treatment. Focal macular edema is caused by foci of vascular abnormalities, primarily microaneurysms, which tend to leakage fluid whereas diffuse macular edema is caused by dilated retinal capillaries in the retina.
Cystoid macular edema (CME) patients frequently have a history of cataract surgery or some other invasive ocular surgery. About 3% of people undergoing cataract extraction will have visual reduction due to CME within the first postoperative year. While complex surgery accounts for most cases of CME, this condition also occasionally occurs after basic surgery. If ocular surgery is not the cause, a long list of events may be to blame; retinal vein occlusion, diabetic macular leakage, idiopathic central serous chorioretinopathy, anterior or posterior uveitis, pars planitis, retinitis pigmentosa, radiation retinopathy, posterior vitreous detachment, epiretinal membrane formation, idiopathic juxtafoveal retinal telangiectasia, Nd:YAG capsulotomy or iridotomy.
How the symptoms of macular edema can affect you
For those who become visually impaired due to DME or CME, it is not a matter of losing knowledge or skills when they develop a vision problem but rather a loss of the ability to accomplish routine daily tasks, living independently, maintaining a career, in short leading a normal life.
All patients who suffer from diabetes have a risk of developing diabetic macular edema (DME). The symptoms of DME can include; blurred vision, double vision, and “floaters” (small black dots or lines made up of cellular debris that float across the front of the eye.
In the cases of cystoid macular edema (CME) the condition appears as macular thickening and swelling. Many cases of CME exhibit a cystic appearance. Radiating cystic spaces may stem from the macula with a loss of the foveal light reflex. With red-free light, you may see a honeycombed appearance corresponding to the fluid-filled cysts. These cysts may combine into a macular cyst and then form a hole.
A person may or may not experience a reduction of visual sharpness. If reduced, a person’s vision may range from 20/25 to 20/400 depending on the severity of the edema. They may also experience fragmented visual perception (metamorphopsia).
Resources
There are many valuable sources of macular edema information available. You can also access resources over the internet such as:
Not everyone suffering from suffering macular edema qualifies for long-term disability benefits; therefore the medical records of each client must be reviewed to determine the level of restrictions.
We welcome the opportunity to discuss your long-term disability claim.
You can contact us here.
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