Learning that you may have Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP) can be quite a shock, and you will need a lot of support, particularly from your ophthalmologist, from other patients, and patient information groups such as RP Fighting Blindness. Professor Michel Michaelides at Clinica London is an expert on Retinitis Pigmentosa, and we’d like to prepare you for what will happen when you meet him.
First of all, you must realise that Retinitis Pigmentosa is a group of different genetic conditions which all result in sight impairment and possibly sight loss; typically with a deterioration of the peripheral field and visual impairment in various levels of light. When you come along to see Professor Michel Michaelides at Clinica London, he will help to diagnose whether you have Retinitis Pigmentosa. If you do, he will advise you on the inheritance risks for you and your family. He will also advise on the clinical risk of gradual development of the condition for you and the risks of your family getting this.
To do determine the inheritance risks, he will take a history of the family tree, and he will do a series of tests at the clinic including the Optos Californian retinal and optic disc scan, OCT of the macula and optic nerve. He will directly inspect your disc and fundus. He will have to dilate your pupils to get an optimal view of your retina.
He will arrange for you to have additional, specific tests at Moorfields Eye Hospital, including genetic testing, to determine whether it is autosomal dominant, autosomal recessive, or X-linked. He will also arrange retinal electrophysiology testing which will tell him more about the function of your retina.
You can read more about Retinitis Pigmentosa on the website www.rpfightingblindness.org.uk.
Retinitis Pigmentosa is not treatable. However, there is a lot that we can do with visual aids, with computers, mobile phones, audio books etc. to help young people of working age continue working and leading a normal life.
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