The retina is a thin membrane that lines the back of the eye. It contains the cells which perceive light and color. Like the film in a camera, it picks up the image and transmits this image to the brain. The retina cannot be seen without specialized equipment and dilating the pupil. The retina is kept healthy through oxygen and nutrients from the blood vessels located at the back of the eyeball.
Many diseases can effect the retina including hypertension, diabetes, immune deficiency and others.
Occasionally, as a result of a combination of age and nearsightedness, or because of an eye injury, fluid will leak beneath the retina and cause it to peel away from the back of the eyeball. Symptoms include dark spots or light flashes, or part of the field of vision will be blotted out, blurred, or distorted. A detached or torn retina is an urgent situation. If tears in the retina are not repaired or the retina is not reattached to its source of nutrients, the cells which perceive light will die, and vision will be permanently lost. Surgery is necessary to repair the damage and is successful in about ninety percent of cases.