What
is Glaucoma?
Who is at
risk?
How
often should I have my eyes examined for Glaucoma?
How is Glaucoma detected?
How
is Glaucoma treated?
| What
is Glaucoma? |
 |
Glaucoma
occurs when the pressure inside the eye is higher than the optic
nerve can tolerate. This causes gradual damage to the individual
nerve fibers that make up the optic nerve. Vision can be affected
when sufficient nerve fibers have been compromised or lost,
first involving peripheral vision and later affecting central
vision. Most people do not experience any symptoms even if the
pressure in the eye is very high, which is why Glaucoma has
been referred to as a "the silent thief of sight." Glaucoma
is the leading cause of permanent blindness worldwide. Additionally,
glaucoma is the second most common cause of legal blindness
in the United States, and is the leading cause of legal blindness
in African-Americans. Approximately two million Americans have
Glaucoma and half of them are unaware that they have the disease.
| Who
is at risk? |
|
Everyone
should be concerned about glaucoma and its effects. It is
important for each of us, from infants to senior citizens,
to have our eyes checked regularly because early detection
and treatment of glaucoma are the only ways to prevent vision
impairment and blindness. There are several conditions related
to this disease which tend to put some people at greater risk
such as: age over 45, near-sightedness, diabetes, race (people
of African descent), history of glaucoma in an immediate relative,
history of prior serious eye injury, systemic hypertension
(high blood pressure), history of long term steroid/cortisone
use, or abnormally high eye pressure
| How
often should I have my eyes examined for Glaucoma? |
|
If
you have any of the risk factors associated with Glaucoma,
it is important to have a comprehensive
eye examination every year.
| How
is Glaucoma detected? |
|
 |
| Visual
Field Machine |
Early
detection of glaucoma is mandatory because the resulting optic
nerve damage is irreversible. The only way to detect Glaucoma
is through a comprehensive eye examination with particular
attention to intraocular pressure and to the appearance of
the optic nerve. Visual Field Testing is used to evaluate
optic nerves which are suspicious in appearance for glaucoma
as well as to monitor for disease progression in eyes diagnosed
with glaucoma. A more recent technology, available at the
Erdey Searcy Eye Group, is often used to help detect damage to the
optic nerve as early as six years before
traditional methods.
 |
| Heidelberg
Retinal Tomograph |
This
instrument uses
a scanning laser to take a special picture of the optic nerve
which is then analyzed to detect early signs of damage caused
by Glaucoma. It is also used to detect progression in those
eyes with glaucoma. Our Heidelberg Retinal Tomograph (HRT)
is one of only a few in Central Ohio (see
video).
| How
is Glaucoma treated? |
|
Once
the diagnosis of Glaucoma is established, the goal is to lower
the pressure in the eye to a certain level. The three methods
to do this include medication (eye drops), laser treatment
which permits the "drain" of the eye to function more efficiently,
and surgery which creates a new "drain" to increase fluid
flow out of the eye. Many patients will not have further loss
of vision if they are monitored regularly and if the pressure
is lowered sufficiently.
|