Glucoma

Know about Glucoma

Glaucoma is an eye disease that causes loss of sight by damaging a part of the eye called the optic nerve. This nerve sends information from your eyes to your brain. When glaucoma damages your optic nerve, you begin to lose patches of vision, usually side vision (peripheral vision). Over time, glaucoma may also damage straight ahead (central) vision. You may not notice a loss of side vision until you have lost a great deal of your sight. When checking for glaucoma, eye doctors usually look for damage to the optic nerve and any loss of side vision. They may also check your eye pressure. Glaucoma is often called the ‘silent killer’ because people usually do not notice any signs of the disease until they have already lost significant vision. Once lost, vision cannot be restored.

Types of Glaucoma

• Chronic (Open Angle) Glaucoma : This is the most common type. In open angle glaucoma, aqueous fluid drains too slowly and pressure inside the eye builds up. It usually results from aging of the drainage channel, which doesn't work as well over time. However, younger people can also get this type of glaucoma.
• Normal Tension Glaucoma : This is a form of open angle glaucoma not related to high pressure. People with normal tension glaucoma may be unusually sensitive to normal levels of pressure. Reduced blood supply to the optic nerve may also play a role in normal tension glaucoma.
• Acute (Angle Closure) Glaucoma : Less than 10 percent of have this form, but It causes a sudden rise in pressure, requiring immediate, emergency medical care. The signs are usually serious and may include blurred vision, severe headaches, eye pain, nausea, vomiting or seeing rainbow-like halos around lights. Occasionally, the condition may be without symptoms; similar to open angle.
• Secondary Glaucoma : Another 10 percent of glaucoma cases come from certain diseases and conditions that damage the eye's drainage system. These include diabetes, leukemia, and sickle-cell anemia also some forms of arthritis, cataracts, eye injuries or inflammation of the eye plus steroid drug use and growth of unhealthy blood vessels
• Post-Surgical Glaucoma : which happen due to some surgeries, such as retinal reattachments increase the chance of getting glaucoma.

Symptoms

• Blurred vision
• Optic nerve damage
• Severe eye pain, nausea and vomiting
• Headache
• Rainbow haloes around lights
• Pain around your eyes after watching TV or after leaving a dark theatre
• Red eyes

Treatment

Glaucoma can be treated, and the sooner the better. The damage that has already occurred from glaucoma cannot be repaired-it will either stay the same or get worse. Catching glaucoma at its earliest stages and treating it promptly will increase the odds of keeping one’s vision.

All of the various glaucoma treatments and procedures are aimed at reducing eye pressure. Eye pressure doesn’t necessarily cause glaucoma, but once it develops, eye pressure speeds up the destructive process.

There are a number of different treatments for glaucoma:

• Eye drops
• Oral medication
• Surgery
• Laser treatment – PI, SLT

The type of treatment depends upon individual conditions.