Glaucoma – General Information Glaucoma is a disease which affects a person’s vision; it progresses slowly and, in most of the cases, without causing any problems. This is the reason why some people find out that they suffer from this disorder only after their vision is completely compromised. There are several types of Glaucoma, but the most common ones are the open-angle form, the angle-closure form, the low-tension form and the secondary form. This disease, however, does not consist only of a single complication, but a class of them. These problems affect the optic nerve and they lead to highly abnormal pressure inside the sufferer’s eyeball. The optic nerve, which is affected in the case of this disease, is composed of a huge number of fibers and it is located in the posterior part of the eye. It plays an extremely important role as it is responsible for carrying the images and the visual information to the brain. When the optic nerve is damaged, several blind spots start to appear in the patient’s visual field. The worst part is the fact that if this disease is not treated in due time, it can result in complete blindness which affects both eyes. However, the medical advances which were made during the past decades, Glaucoma is nowadays easier to diagnose and to treat. In addition, if it is diagnosed in an early stage, it may not even cause any complications but the possible sufferer must be treated for the rest of his life in order to eliminate the risk of suffering from this disorder. Glaucoma- Symptoms The signs and symptoms which are usually associated with Glaucoma differ a lot from a patient to another any they can be classified considering the type of the disease which a person suffers from. In the case of open-angle type, the sufferer may not experience any signs at all until the disease reaches a critical stage; at that point, if the disease is not treated effectively it can result in vision loss in both of the eyes. In the case of the angle-closure type, the sufferers also experience a high level of the intra-ocular pressure, but, in this case, the symptoms evolve in a fast rhythm. In addition, the sufferers can experience a complete vision loss within the 48 hours after an attack. These attacks usually appear when a person’s pupils are extremely dilated because of the insufficient quantity of light in a certain place or in a room. The pain which characterizes these attacks is severe and persistent. Even though the signs and symptoms associated with this disorder differ a lot considering the type of the disorder, there are some common complications which affect all the sufferers: severe pain in the eyes, blurred vision, reddening of the eye, vomiting, halos around lights and nausea. If the exact cause which leads to the appearance of Glaucoma is known, then the patient suffer from a primary form; on the other hand, if the cause of the disease is not known, the patient suffers from a secondary form. In the second case, the most possible causes may include a surgery or a disease. Glaucoma – Treatment If we take into consideration the fact that, in most of the cases, this disease is not characterized by a large number of signs and symptoms until it reaches a final stage, then the best way in which is can be detected early enough for an effective treatment are regular eye exams. These exams should be performed by every person; no matter how well he may be feeling. On the other hand, if you have recently experienced severe attacks of headaches, blurred vision, halos around light, pain in the eye or nausea you should consult a doctor as soon as possible. If your doctor considers that you may suffer from Glaucoma, he will probably recommend you one or more of the following tests, in order to establish the level of the damage and the stage of the disease. The most common test is the tonometry which consists of measuring the pressure inside the eye. There are two main ways in which this test can be done: applanation (in this case, a slit lamp is used to provide illumination of the iris, the cornea, the anterior chamber and the lens) and air-puff (in this case, a puff of air is used in order to measure how much force is needed to indent the patient’s cornea). Other tests include tonometry readings, visual field tests, optic nerve damage tests, pachymetry or gonioscopy. However, in order to obtain a sure diagnosis and to determine exactly the stage of Glaucoma, the doctor has to obtain sure information about the following factors: the level of the vision loss, the intraocular pressure and the alteration of the optic nerve. In addition, when it is in a late stage, this disease is also characterized by the damage of the optic disk. There are several ways in which Glaucoma can be treated; the aim of the treatment is to diminish the pressure inside the eyes and the production of the aqueous. The most common ways of treating this disease are the surgery, the usage of eye-drops, the laser treatment, the administration of systemic medications or a combination of two or more of these procedures. However, this disease can not be treated completely and the patient has to follow a life-time treatment in order to eliminate the possibility of recurrence and to prevent complete vision loss. The first measure which is taken in the case of all the sufferers of Glaucoma is the administration of eye-drops, which stabilize the intraocular pressure. The most important part about the administration of eye-drops is the fact that the patient has to follow exactly the dosage he was prescribed; otherwise, the disease can worsen. In most of the cases, the eye-drops are combined with oral medications in order to obtain a faster and more effective result. If neither the eye-drops nor the drugs lead to a stabilization of Glaucoma, then the doctor will probably choose to perform a surgery. There are three main types of surgery which your doctor can choose from: laser surgery, conventional surgery or drainage implants.