Eye conditions explained
A guide to common eye conditions, what they are, what to watch for, and when to book a check.
Written by Ali Selman, Optometrist · Last reviewed July 2026
A guide to common eye conditions, what they are, what to watch for, and when to book a check.
Written by Ali Selman, Optometrist · Last reviewed July 2026
Most serious eye conditions are painless in their early stages, so a check is what finds them.
The most common reasons people need glasses. The eye doesn't focus light precisely on the retina, so vision is blurred at certain distances.
Distance objects look blurry and close vision is clear. Often diagnosed in childhood and progresses through teen years. Modern myopia control can slow it.
Close up tasks become tiring or blurry. The eye works harder than it should, causing headaches and eye strain.
Cornea is curved unevenly. Vision is blurry or distorted at all distances. Easily corrected with spectacles or toric contact lenses.
Squinting, headaches, eye strain after screens, holding things close or far, sitting too close to the TV (especially in children).
From around age 40, the lens loses flexibility, making close up text harder to focus. It's not a disease and it happens to everyone, but it does need correcting.
You'll notice it first with menus in dim restaurants, mobile phone text, or fine print. By the mid-50s, almost everyone needs reading correction.
Holding your phone further away. Tired eyes after reading. Needing more light. Headaches at the end of a screen day.
A chronic condition where the tear film no longer lubricates or protects the eye properly. It has become more common as screen use has risen.
It's often confused with allergies, because the eye produces more reflex tears as it gets irritated. Treatment targets the quality of the tear film, not the quantity.
A proper assessment looks at tear quality, blink quality, eyelid health and meibomian gland function. Treatments range from artificial tears, warm compresses and lid hygiene through to clinical procedures.
Burning, gritty or sandy feeling. Watery eyes, a common sign despite the name. Blurred vision that clears with a blink. Trouble wearing contact lenses you used to tolerate.
Sometimes called surfer's eye. Both are growths on the surface of the eye, driven mostly by years of UV exposure, wind and dust. Australia's high UV levels make pterygium common here.
Pinguecula is a yellowish bump on the white of the eye, usually near the nose. Harmless but can become inflamed.
Pterygium is a fleshy growth that extends onto the cornea. If it advances toward the pupil it can affect vision.
A persistent yellow or fleshy bump on the white of the eye, recurring redness in the same spot, gritty sensation in bright conditions, gradual blurring if a pterygium reaches the cornea.
Inflammation of the thin membrane covering the white of the eye and the inside of the eyelid. Common, and treatment depends on the cause.
Viral: usually one eye first, then the other, with watery discharge, often alongside a cold. Highly contagious. Resolves in 1 to 2 weeks.
Bacterial: thick yellow or green discharge, eyelashes glued together. Usually responds quickly to antibiotic drops.
Allergic: both eyes, intensely itchy, often seasonal. Anti-allergy drops and cold compresses help.
Pink or red eye, discharge, itch, gritty feeling, eyelid swelling. Vision should remain clear. If it does not, seek attention urgently.
A clouding of the eye's natural lens. Part of normal ageing, but the impact ranges from barely noticeable to severely disabling.
Vision becomes hazy, washed out, or smeared with glare. Night driving is often the first thing to suffer.
Early stages: an updated prescription and brighter task lighting. When cataracts affect day to day life, modern cataract surgery is one of the most commonly performed procedures in Australia, and your ophthalmologist will talk you through expected outcomes. We coordinate referral and continue post operative care.
Difficulty driving at night, halos around oncoming headlights, faded or yellowed colours, frequent prescription changes, glare in bright sunshine.
A group of conditions damaging the optic nerve, usually associated with elevated eye pressure. It progresses slowly and painlessly, so most people notice nothing until significant vision has been lost.
Around 300,000 Australians have glaucoma, and about half don't know it (Glaucoma Australia). Treatment with eye drops or laser can often slow progression when started early. Outcomes vary between individuals.
A glaucoma assessment includes measuring eye pressure, examining the optic nerve and mapping peripheral vision with automated visual field testing. We refer to ophthalmology for treatment when needed and share the ongoing care.
Often none. That's why regular checks matter, especially if anyone in your family has had glaucoma. Late stage signs include tunnel vision and missing patches in side vision.
AMD affects the macula, the small central part of the retina that handles fine detail and reading vision. Age-related macular degeneration is the leading cause of severe vision loss and blindness in Australia (Macular Disease Foundation Australia).
Dry AMD is more common. The macula thins gradually, often over years.
Wet AMD involves abnormal blood vessels growing under the retina. Timely treatment with anti-VEGF injections can help preserve vision, and your ophthalmologist will advise what is possible in your case.
Straight lines (door frames, lamp posts) appearing wavy or bent. A dim or blurry patch in the centre of your vision. Difficulty recognising faces. Sudden distortion is urgent.
Diabetes affects the small blood vessels at the back of the eye. Over time, those vessels can leak, swell or close off, diabetic retinopathy.
Diabetes is the leading cause of preventable blindness in working age Australians (Diabetes Australia). An eye assessment at least every 2 years, and yearly where risk is higher, is part of standard diabetes care.
If we see something needing intervention, we refer urgently and stay involved in your ongoing care.
Often nothing in early stages. Floaters that "rain down", patches of missing vision, or sudden blur all warrant urgent attention.
A progressive condition where the cornea thins and bulges into a cone shape. Typically appears in late teens or early twenties and can run in families.
Mild cases cause increasing astigmatism. As it progresses, vision becomes more distorted, with ghosting, halos and streaking around lights all typical.
Rapidly changing prescriptions in your teens or twenties. Distorted vision that glasses can't fully fix. Halos and starbursts around lights. Family history.
Floaters are little drifting spots in your vision, shadows cast by tiny clumps inside the vitreous. Most are harmless and become more common with age.
Flashes are brief sparkles or arcs of light, often most visible in side vision or at night. They happen when the vitreous tugs on the retina.
Long standing floaters that you've had for years are typically benign. The vitreous shrinks and pulls away from the retina with age (posterior vitreous detachment, PVD), a normal part of getting older.
A sudden shower of new floaters, especially with flashing lights or a shadow or curtain across part of your vision, can mean a retinal tear or detachment. Same day emergency.
A sudden burst of new floaters. Flashes you've never had. A "veil" or "curtain" coming across your vision. Loss of side vision. Don't wait.
When the retina pulls away from the back of the eye. Without prompt treatment, vision in that eye is permanently lost.
It often starts with a small tear caused by the vitreous tugging on the retina. A sudden change is treated as a same day emergency.
Sudden flashes, shower of new floaters, dark "curtain" across part of your vision, or sudden blurry vision in one eye. Treat as emergency.
Around 8% of men and 0.5% of women have some form of colour vision deficiency, commonly called "colour blindness" (Colour Blind Awareness). Most cases are inherited.
The most common is red-green deficiency. Total colour blindness is rare.
For some types, specialised tinted lenses may enhance colour discrimination, though benefit varies.
Children mixing colours in artwork. Family history. A sudden change in colour perception. Book promptly.
Children's vision develops through to about age 8. If something interferes during those years, the brain can stop using one eye properly. The window to fix it gets smaller each year.
Amblyopia (lazy eye): reduced vision in one eye that the brain has switched off. Treatable with patching, atropine or glasses.
Strabismus (eye turn): one eye drifts. Early intervention is essential.
Myopia progression: evidence based myopia control options can slow progression in many children (International Myopia Institute).
Tilting the head, closing one eye, sitting close to the screen, complaining of headaches, difficulty with reading after starting school.
Most eye injuries happen at home, at work or playing sport. What you do in the first few minutes matters, so these are the five we are asked about most.
Foreign body: blink, then flush gently with clean water or saline. If it does not shift, do not rub. Come and see us.
Chemical splash: irrigate immediately with running water for at least 15 minutes, removing contact lenses if present, then go straight to a hospital emergency department.
Corneal abrasion: painful, light sensitive, watery. Most heal in 24 to 48 hours with treatment.
Blunt trauma: even if vision seems fine, get checked. Internal damage can take time to appear.
Penetrating injury: do not touch or wash. Cover loosely and go straight to hospital.
Anything piercing or cutting the eye, chemical splashes, vision loss after trauma, persistent pain. Do not wait. Present to a hospital emergency department.
For urgent eye concerns, call us on +61 402 725 735. If we can see you the same day, we will. If you can't reach us, present to a hospital emergency department or call 000.
With a valid Medicare card your eye examination is bulk billed, regardless of when your last test was, and we take care of the billing. From age 65, or if you have a monitored condition, we recommend a check every year. We bulk bill Medicare card holders at home, at school, in aged care and in the community. Workplace visits are privately billed, with private health fund claiming available.
Information on this page is general in nature and not a substitute for professional advice. If you have any concerns about your eyes, contact us.