Published on Feb 13, 2018 and last reviewed on Feb 04, 2022 - 2 min read
Abstract
Glaucoma is an eye condition that is caused by fluid-build up and increased pressure in the eye, leading to progressive vision loss.
Glaucoma is a chronic, progressive disease. It poses a diagnostic dilemma for ophthalmologists and the patients get frustrated because it is often diagnosed at the advanced stage and they are unaware that they even have a disease. As there are no symptoms initially, they are unsure if they should continue the medicines or not and for doctors, it is difficult to decide whether to start treatment or not, when to start, when to stop, when to change, add-on or switch to surgery.
Every ophthalmologist may follow their own protocol in this disease. But as I said it is a chronic progressive disease. What happens is the person visits an ophthalmologist with a non-specific symptom, sometimes not specific to the disease even and gets to know the possibility of having this disease even with a good vision. Yes, this is possible and you would be lucky if you get informed early about the possibility of this disease because there are so many treatment options available if detected early.
As soon as you get to know about the possibility of having glaucoma, get a baseline visual field examination done, and diurnal intraocular pressure changes recorded. The vision best corrected and uncorrected both should be recorded at the first sitting for follow-ups. At this stage, you may not require initiation of the medicines but in advanced cases, immediate treatment is required.
Remember, it is a progressive disease. So, regular yearly followup is required. At times, it may seem useless to the patient but it must not be overlooked that the disease progression can be halted or at least slowed down if not completely stopped.
Also, not to forget, once the damage has occurred, it cannot be reverted by any means. So, early diagnosis and initiating treatment with any sign of progression is the key. Even after initiating treatment, there is no single drug that fits all. For every patient, the treatment is individualized with close follow-up with the recording of vision and intraocular pressure at every followup which is monthly at this time.
This is just a drop of knowledge from the whole sea, in terms of information about glaucoma.
The Points Not to Forget Are:
For more information consult a glaucoma specialist online --> https://www.icliniq.com/ask-a-doctor-online/eye-care-ophthalmologist/glaucoma
Last reviewed at:
04 Feb 2022 - 2 min read
RATING
Ophthalmology (Eye Care)
Comprehensive Medical Second Opinion.Submit your Case
Which is better for controlling eye pressure, Dorzolamide or Brimonidine?
Query: Hi doctor, Four eye drops are used in combination to control eye pressure in case of glaucoma. They are Dorzolamide, Timolol, Brimonidine and Xalatan. In what sequence with how much gap should they be given to control eye pressure? Also for controlling afternoon pressure, either Dorzolamide or Brimo... Read Full »
Glaucoma - an Overview of Causes, Types and Treatment
Article Overview: Most people know glaucoma as a disease associated with diabetes and is caused by high intraocular pressure (pressure in the eye). I have explained its causes, types, symptoms, investigations, and treatment in detail in this article. Read Article
What Is Glaucoma? Glaucoma is optic neuropathy, which is a disease of the optic nerve that generally progresses over time. The optic nerve is the second cranial nerve that connects the eye to the brain. The optic nerve damage due to glaucoma is evident in the optic nerve head, the place where the o... Read Article
Most Popular Articles
Do you have a question on Glaucoma or Eye Pressure?
Ask a Doctor Online