This minor blood vessel damage can gradually lead to blocked blood flow to your retinas. The retina acts like a microphone for the information coming through your pupils: receiving, converting and transmitting all the light signals to the brain. So, no blood flow means your “microphone” isn’t “plugged in.”
However, your body tries to fix itself. It’ll grow new blood vessels despite having inadequate blood flow. This results in less healthy or effective blood vessels that sometimes leak or rupture, which can leave damaging scar tissue.
During our licensed optometrists’ comprehensive yearly eye exam, they use pupil dilation to better evaluate your overall health. Here are just a few ways they examine your eyes:
- Measuring tiny changes in blood flow to the eyes
- Checking the eye’s internal structures, like the retina and optic nerve
- Looking for any tears or perforations