When increased eye pressure causes damage to the nerve of eye( optic nerve) it is called as glaucoma.It is one of the major causes of blindness. It causes irreversible and progressive loss of vision. Usually it does not have any typical symptoms. By the time patient becomes aware of vision loss the disease becomes advanced.
1.Age more than 40years
2.Family history of glaucoma
3.History of trauma to eye
4.Steroid use
5.Narrow anterior chamber angle (anatomical variation)
Regular routine eye check up is the only way to detect it at the earliest so that further damage can be prevented.Therefore every individual above 40 years should undergo routine eye check up yearly.
Vision loss due to glaucoma can not be reversed but the progression of the disease can be checked by prompt timely treatment. This disease is usually diagnosed by clinical examination,imaging and visual field test or perimetry.Once diagnosed a target intraocular pressure is set and antiglaucoma medication is started to achieve the target pressure. Patients in whom compliance is poor or pressure is poorly controlled in spite of maximal medical therapy or there are side effects of medical therapy are candidates for surgical treatment like trabeculectomy or tube surgery.
