Glaucoma Symptoms and Treatment Options in Glendale

Eye diseases can cause great discomfort for patients. The effects of having an eye condition move from mere discomfort to blurred vision, and sometimes even blindness. This is often the case for patients with glaucoma.

What is Glaucoma?

It is an eye condition that causes significant damage to the optic nerves of your eyes. When the optic nerve is damaged, the consequences begin to advance quickly, and blind spots start to develop in your visual field. The optic nerves are very important for achieving a clear vision. It is why glaucoma is the reason for most cases of blindness in the world. The condition often results from increased pressure in your eyes, usually at an abnormal rate.

The increase of the pressure in the eyes has not been conclusively determined by eye doctors. However, it is established that the heightening of the pressure is a result of fluids building up in the eyes. The fluids are called aqueous humor. They are supposed to drain out naturally through the trabecular meshwork of the eye at an angle where the cornea and iris meet. When there is a blockage, the fluids fail to drain properly, causing build-up, and eventually, elevated pressure.

An optometrist near you will tell you that glaucoma is a disease for old people. However, the disease can also befall young people, including children. The worst thing about glaucoma is that it happens gradually. Most victims of this disease do not experience any glaucoma symptoms, or even vision blurredness, until late into the disease. Even worse is that blindness that is as a result of glaucoma cannot be recovered. This is why eye doctors in Glendale, CA, emphasize on regular eye checkups and exams so that your eye pressure can be measured and controlled where a need arises.

The Different Types of Glaucoma

The most common types of glaucoma are:

• Open-angle glaucoma – it is the most common type, accounting for more than 90% of the worldwide cases of glaucoma. It happens when the drainage canals of the eyes slowly start to clog. The condition features a wide or open-angle between the iris and cornea, hence its name. It is a difficult condition to diagnose since the symptoms and signs are not usually clear.
• Narrow-angle glaucoma – this one is not as common as open-angle glaucoma. The blockage of the drainage canals increases the intraocular pressure, resulting in glaucoma. For this type of glaucoma, it causes a closed or narrow angle between the iris and cornea, hence its name. The symptoms of this type of glaucoma are very noticeable. However, the disease progresses very quickly, with blindness likely to happen in 2 days or so. This type of glaucoma necessitates immediate medical attention to prevent blindness from happening.

Other types of glaucoma cover variances in open-angle and narrow-angle glaucoma, including the following:

• Pigmentary glaucoma
• Traumatic glaucoma
• Secondary glaucoma
• Uveitic glaucoma, to mention a few.

General Symptoms of Glaucoma

Depending on the type of glaucoma you have, the symptoms that show up will differ. However, the general symptoms you should look out for to indicate the possibility of the disease include:

• Severe eye pain- especially one that will not go away after a couple of hours.
• Nausea and vomiting – usually in the accompaniment of the eye pain
• Severe headaches – usually happen subsequently with eye pain.
• Blurred vision
• Halos around lights that were never noticed before
• Reddening of the eyes
• Visual disturbances – usually occur as sudden offsets, particularly in low lights.
• The gradual loss of periphery vision

When Should You See an Eye Doctor?

Any of the above-mentioned symptoms should be a cause for alarm. Glaucoma is a serious eye disorder that progresses very quickly and has very significant negative implications on eye health. Determine to see a doctor as soon as you experience one or two of the symptoms highlighted earlier. It is better to be safe than sorry, especially when it comes to eye care.

Treatment Options for Glaucoma

The treatment is possible before you lose your vision. It involves reducing the pressure of the eyes by reducing the built-up fluids. However, the treatment will vary based on your situation, ranging from eye drops and oral medication to surgery and laser treatment. In some cases, a combination of any of these treatments is used.