Glaucoma is thought to be third leading cause of blindness worldwide. According to the CDC, approximately 2.2 million American aged 40 and older have glaucoma, and of these, as many as 120,000 are blind, it is predicted that this will rise to 2.79 million by 2010. Worldwide, an estimated 66.8 million people are visually impaired due to glaucoma, and an estimated 6.7 million are blind. Unfortunately, half of those individuals affected with glaucoma may not even be aware that they have it.
What is the Glaucoma?
Glaucoma is a group of eye diseases that lead to damage of the optic nerve (the bundle of nerve fibers that carries information from the eye to the brain), which can then lead to vision loss and possibly blindness. Optic nerve damage usually occurs in the presence of high eye pressure (intraocular); however, it can occur with normal or even less than normal eye pressure.
What are the symptoms?
Glaucoma can be divided into two main categories, “Open-Angle Glaucoma” and “Acute Closed-Angle Glaucoma”, both types have completely different symptoms.
Open-angle Glaucoma: Open-angle glaucoma, the most common form, initially has no symptoms. The pressure in the eye builds up gradually. At some point, the optic nerve is damaged and side vision (peripheral vision) is lost. Without treatment, total blindness will occur.
Acute Closed-angle Glaucoma: Acute closed-angle glaucoma is the result of a sudden blockage in the normal flow of eye fluid (aqueous humor) between the iris and the lens. Symptoms may include severe pain, nausea, vomiting, blurred vision, and seeing a rainbow halo around lights. Acute closed-angle glaucoma is a medical emergency and must be treated immediately or blindness could result in one or two days.
How can I prevent by Glaucoma?
Studies have shown that the early detection and treatment of glaucoma before it causes major vision loss is the best way to control the disease.
Get Regular Eye Care: Regular checkups can help detect glaucoma in its early stages before irreversible damage occurs. As a general rule, have eye exams every two years if you’re between the ages of 18 and 60, and every year if you’re older than 60. If you have one or more risk factors, you should have eye exams every one to two years until you’re 60, and every year after that.
Treat Elevated Eye Pressure: A large trial at the National Eye Institute found that glaucoma eye drops could reduce eye pressure by an average of 22 percent. In the same trial, daily use of eye drops reduced the risk that elevated eye pressure would progress to glaucoma by nearly 50 percent.
Control Your Weight And Blood Pressure: Recent studies have shown that insulin resistance, which may result from hypertension and obesity, is linked to elevated intraocular pressure.
Wear Eye Protection: Serious eye injuries can lead to glaucoma. Wear a mask or goggles when you use power tools, play high-speed racket sports on enclosed courts or otherwise risk being hit in the eye.
What are the available tests to diagnose and treatments?
These are some of the tests that can establish a diagnosis of glaucoma:
Tonometry: Tonometry is a simple, painless procedure that measures your intraocular pressure, after numbing your eyes with drops. It is usually the initial screening test for glaucoma.
Test for Optic Nerve Damage: To check the fibers in your optic nerve, your eye doctor uses an instrument that enables him or her to look directly through the pupil to the back of your eye. This can reveal slight changes that may indicate the beginnings of glaucoma.
Photographs & Drawings of the Optic Nerve: These images may be useful for documenting the severity of the condition.
Visual Field Test: To check whether your visual field has been affected by glaucoma, your doctor uses a special test to evaluate your peripheral (side) vision.
Pachymetry: Your eyes are numbed for this test, which determines the thickness of each cornea, an important factor in diagnosing glaucoma.
Other Tests: To distinguish between open-angle glaucoma and angle-closure glaucoma, your eye doctor may use a technique called gonioscopy in which doctor places a special lens on your eye to inspect the drainage angle. Another test, tonography, can measure how quickly fluid drains from your eye.
Immediate treatment for glaucoma can delay progression of the disease. That’s why early diagnosis is very important. Glaucoma treatments include medicines, laser trabeculoplasty, conventional surgery, or a combination of any of these. While these treatments may save remaining vision, they do not improve sight already lost from glaucoma.
Medicines: Medicines, in the form of eye drops or pills, are the most common early treatment for glaucoma. Some medicines cause the eye to make less fluid, others lower pressure by helping fluid drain from the eye.
Because glaucoma often has no symptoms, people may be tempted to stop taking, or may forget to take, their medicine. You need to use the drops or pills as long as they help control your eye pressure. Regular use is very important. Make sure your eye care professional shows you how to put the drops into your eye.
Laser trabeculoplasty: Laser trabeculoplasty helps fluid drain out of the eye. Your doctor may suggest this step at any time. In many cases, you need to keep taking glaucoma drugs after this procedure. Studies show that laser surgery is very good at reducing the pressure in some patients.
Conventional surgery: Conventional surgery makes a new opening for the fluid to leave the eye. Conventional surgery often is done after medicines and laser surgery has failed to control pressure. Laser trabeculoplasty and conventional surgery both performed on one eye at a time.
A diagnosis of glaucoma shouldn’t prevent you from enjoying your life. When you have the facts, you can take charge of your health with just a few adjustments to your routine. Remember, most cases of glaucoma are managed through medication, surgery, or a combination of treatments. With an early diagnosis, most people with glaucoma do not go blind.
GOD BLESS US…..
Author: Salman Afaq is a physician.
