Glaucoma is an eye disease characterized by increased intraocular pressure. It is a major public health problem worldwide. At the individual level, glaucoma is a particular form of blindness, which, unlike cataract, is irreversible and is characterized by progressive and complete destruction of the optic nerve. Progressively restricting the visual field until blindness occurs.
Although the pathogenesis of glaucoma is not yet fully understood, therapeutic maneuvers to reduce intraocular pressure seem to slow the disease progress in most patients. Early diagnosis offers the best way to maximize the number of years with view for patients who have glaucoma. Any loss that is due to glaucoma and that occurred before his diagnosis, is unrecoverable. Therefore early diagnosis and treatment under the supervision of an ophtalmic doctor is the most important in preventing and stopping the evolution of glaucoma. Any person over 40 years should go regularly to the ophtalmic doctor, even though, apparently, he doesn’t have eye problems. Glaucoma does not hurt, it blinds!
Glaucoma can be of several types: congenital glaucoma, primitive closed-angle glaucoma, normal pressure glaucoma, narrow angle glaucoma, pigmentary glaucoma, pseudo-exfoliative glaucoma, neovascular glaucoma, steroid-induced glaucoma, post-traumatic glaucoma, glaucoma in increased episcleral venous pressure, glaucoma associated with abnormalities of cornea and iris, tumors, retinal diseases.
Glaucoma treatment varies depending on type. For example, in congenital glaucoma, surgery is a good choice, in primitive narrow-angle glaucoma a good practice is laser therapy, and in primitive open angle glaucoma, a target intraocular pressure is achieved through medication and, when it no longer has results, it turns to surgery. Glaucoma surgery does not “solve” the eye problem unfortunately, it just help to not deteriorate it further.
Besides the proper treatment of each form of glaucoma, it is very important to carefully follow patients: monthly tonometry (monthly measurement of intraocular pressure), visual field measurement at 4-6 months, computerized tomography of optic nerve annualy and fundus examination every few months.
Video presentations:
- Glaucoma – introduction
- Glaucoma – description
- Glaucoma – how fluid circulates inside the eye
- Glaucoma – causes
