Retinal hemorrhage is a disorder of the
eye in which bleeding occurs into the light sensitive tissue on the back wall of the eye. A retinal hemorrhage can be caused by
hypertension,
retinal vein occlusion (a blockage of a retinal vein), or
diabetes mellitus (which causes small fragile blood vessels to form, which are easily damaged). Retinal hemorrhages can also occur due to shaking, particularly in young
infants (
shaken baby syndrome) or from severe blows to the head.