Cholesterol often gets a bad rep because of its association with heart disease; however, it also affects our eyes in many ways. A blue or yellow ring around the cornea is an indicator of high cholesterol in people under 40 and should not be ignored as an indicator.

Eye exams can detect high blood pressure by inspecting the blood vessels of your eyes. High blood pressure can damage retinal blood vessels and lead to serious eye disorders like glaucoma.

Corneal Arcus

An arc or ring around the cornea’s edge caused by build-ups of fats such as cholesterol and other lipids is called “arcus senilis”, typically seen among elderly individuals and associated with familial hypercholesterolemia, also known as FH; associated with carotid artery stenosis and Sturge-Weber syndrome if present; its appearance before age 50 could indicate high cholesterol levels as well as increased risks for heart disease.

As with other parts of the body, eyelid fatty deposits may form similar yellowish-orange plaques that feel soft and velvety to touch – this condition is known as xanthelasma and could also indicate high cholesterol. According to Cleveland Clinic reports, this condition results in deposits on various areas such as hands, elbows and knees as well as eyelids and at the corners of eyes forming over time.

Researchers conducted extensive studies on the relationship between arcus and blood cholesterol levels among those under 40 years of age, concluding that although it’s a normal part of aging, arcus does not correlate directly to cholesterol levels among younger adults. Arcus can serve as an early indicator of FH; further investigation should include blood tests. People under the age of 40 with family histories that include both high arcus and cholesterol levels should be screened for hyperlipidemia as part of regular screening checks.

Retinal Artery Occlusion

Blood clots or cholesterol deposits can block the arteries that supply your retina (the layer at the back of your eye where visual images form), leading to severe loss of vision in one or both eyes. This condition, known as central retinal artery occlusion or CRAO, typically happens painlessly but must be addressed quickly to avoid severe visual loss in either eye. A small clot or plaque from somewhere can travel down through carotid arteries, diseased hearts, or other sources and block retinal artery which then blocks blood flow which must be addressed promptly to avoid severe visual loss and severe visual loss in either or both eyes resulting in loss of vision – medical emergency need must be treated immediately!

If diagnosed with CRAO, your doctor will advise immediate treatment to decrease intraocular pressure and search for emboli. You’ll likely receive eye drops to dilate pupil and undergo an eye exam with a retina specialist who may use special machines that scan light through your eyeball to look for non-perfused areas in your retina like central retinal artery and branch retinal vein. In addition, systemic evaluation for any diseases which might contribute such as high blood pressure, diabetes or heart disease must also take place and high dose systemic corticosteroids can even prevent future attacks of CRAO in some cases.

Glaucoma

Glaucoma is an eye disease characterized by fluid build-up in the eye that leads to increased pressure, damaging optic nerve fibers. If left untreated, glaucoma can result in blindness; routine eye exams or the tonometry test can detect it and evaluate your optic nerve’s appearance and shape as a measure for tonometry results. There are various treatments for glaucoma including medications and laser surgery;

One of the most prevalent forms of glaucoma, known as open-angle glaucoma, develops gradually when your eye’s drainage area becomes blocked or clogged, leading to an increase in eye pressure that damages the optic nerve that sends visual messages back to the brain. Closed-angle glaucoma occurs when drainage between cornea and iris becomes narrowed or blocked leading to rapid increase in eye pressure which can be dangerous and even cause vision loss.

If you are at risk for glaucoma, your ophthalmologist should recommend having comprehensive eye exams starting at age 40 and every three to five years thereafter. People at higher risks for glaucoma may require seeing their physician every one to two years. You can further reduce your risk by taking cholesterol-reducing statins; yellow or blue rings around the cornea could be an early indicator of high cholesterol that should be evaluated by your ophthalmologist.

Thyroid Disease

Graves Disease can have serious repercussions for your eyes in many ways, especially if your thyroid works harder than necessary (hyperthyroidism). When this occurs, fat and muscle tissues around your eyes can swell up dramatically, leading them to protrude out of their sockets (exophthalmos).

Graves disease can also cause an upper eyelid to swell and become puffy or irritated, causing symptoms like blurred vision, eye redness, itching, watering and dry eyes. You may also have difficulty moving or closing your eyelid.

Hyperthyroidism can cause your eyes to become very dry and irritated, appearing red and bloodshot. Other symptoms can include heat sensitivity, hair loss, weight gain, restlessness and changes to menstruation cycles.

If you suspect that you have a thyroid condition, your physician will want to conduct some blood tests to monitor thyroxine and TSH levels in your blood. If either is too high and/or TSH too low, hyperthyroidism could be present.

If you have hyperthyroidism, your doctor will likely prescribe medication to control hormone production. Methimazole (Tapazole) is one of the most frequently prescribed drugs used to treat this condition and it’s essential that you adhere to any instructions from an endocrinologist as failure to do so could result in goiters that interfere with swallowing and breathing if left untreated.

Rheumatoid Arthritis

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a long-term, chronic inflammatory disease affecting joints. It occurs when our immune systems mistakenly attack their own healthy tissues lining our joints resulting in damage to cartilage and bone in these joint surfaces, deforming their structure over time and leading to deformed limbs. Although RA affects people of all ages, women smoking or obese are especially prone to it.

Symptoms of arthritis (RA) can include red, scaly rashes on the skin (psoriasis), joint pain and swelling, fatigue and an overall sense of being unwell. Furthermore, inflammation may spread beyond joints to other parts of the body including eyes and lungs.

Doctors can diagnose RA by studying their medical history and conducting an in-person physical exam of affected joints, using tools like x-rays to search for signs of damage to bones in joints and blood tests to measure levels of antibodies associated with this form of arthritis. While it often seems to “flare up” before going back into remission, eventually leading to permanent joint damage that requires long-term care and medication like disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs or in severe cases surgery to address.

Lyme Disease

Lyme disease, caused by Borrelia burgdorferi bacteria, is one of the most prevalent tick-borne infectious illnesses in the United States and was first identified as such in 1976 in Lyme, Connecticut. Transmission occurs through Ixodes scapularis ticks in northeastern and North Central United States while Ixodes platycephalus ticks are more likely to transmit infection in Pacific Northwest areas.

Lyme disease bacteria can infect many organs, including skin, heart, nervous system and joints. Initial symptoms of Lyme disease may include fever, headache and fatigue; later symptoms could include joint and muscle pain/stiffness as well as brain inflammation called encephalopathy and abnormalities in the heart; in late-stage Lyme disease this could include facial paralysis and Bell’s Palsy syndrome resulting from nervous system damage.

An accurate history is critical in order to provide an accurate diagnosis. Review of general health conditions, current medications and past therapies as well as list of past medicines can give insights into side effects from drug interactions with cholesterol and its metabolic side effects. Aside from blood tests, your physician might order joint aspiration (arthrocentesis) or electrocardiogram (EKG), and possibly also request lumbar puncture testing – performed by either an ophthalmologist, internist or primary care physician but in certain instances neuropsychiatrist could also need involvement as well.