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Open-angle glaucoma is a disease of the eye that can slowly and painlessly cause permanent loss of vision. It rarely causes any symptoms until its in an advanced stage, which is why its known as the silent thief of sight.

Glaucoma is a leading cause of irreversible blindness in the world. If you have risk factors, being proactive and getting your eyes checked is incredibly important. Your ophthalmologist can spot the signs of early glaucoma and help stop vision loss.

So what exactly is glaucoma?

Glaucoma is a progressive disease of the optic nerve when the pressure in the eye is higher than the nerve can tolerate. Patients begin to lose their peripheral vision and over time this progresses inward. Patients with glaucoma rarely have complaints until the disease has advanced to the center of their vision; however, it is often too late to help at that point because the damage is not reversible. With early diagnosis by an eye doctor, there are many treatments available to stop glaucoma from advancing.

What can cause open-angle glaucoma?

The nerve damage in glaucoma in most cases is due to an increased pressure in the eye. Pressure levels vary for each patient and even throughout the day. Pressure is maintained by aqueous humor or fluid in the eye that is constantly produced by a tiny gland in the eye the ciliary body. This fluid flows between the iris and the lens, then out of the eye through a very small drain called the trabecular meshwork. Pressure in the eye is elevated for two main reasons: The trabecular meshwork drain is clogged and enough fluid doesnt leave the eye, or the ciliary body produces too much fluid. This elevated pressure typically does not cause any symptoms and will silently damage the nerve.

Whos at risk of developing Glaucoma?

Anyone can get glaucoma; however, some individuals are at higher risk for developing glaucoma. Those at highest risk are African American patients over the age of 50, Hispanic patients over the age of 65, patients with a family history of glaucoma and patients with diabetes. Medicare recommends to have yearly screenings for patients who fall under any of these high-risk groups in order to catch the disease at its earliest state.

How to check for glaucoma

Thanks to advances in medicine, we have the ability to diagnose glaucoma earlier and more accurately. A typical evaluation includes a comprehensive eye exam where an eye doctor analyzes the nerve for damage and measures the pressure in the eye, which should range between 8 and 21 mmHg. Additionally, there are two other tests performed to accurately diagnose if you have the disease and what stage. First, an OCT nerve scan is used to detect subtle thinning/damage of the nerve. Secondly, a visual field is performed to test for areas of missing vision.

How is glaucoma treated?

When diagnosed and treatment has begun, it is a lifelong disease that will require continuous management. We can control or slow the progression, but unfortunately cannot reverse or cure glaucoma. There are many eye drops available and, depending on the severity, more than one medication may be needed. If glaucoma cant be controlled with medications, other procedures such as laser or surgery may be considered.

For more information about glaucoma or any eye disease, call Dr. Jhaj at his office directly at 442-255-4012.

Read the original post:
My Health, My Choice: Glaucoma, the silent thief of sight - VVdailypress.com

This entry was posted on August 13, 2020 at 7:52 pm and is filed under Eye Sight & Vision. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed. |