Glaucoma: Types, Age factor, eye pressure and Commonly asked questions.
This eye disease is making many people blind
every year.
What is Glaucoma?
Glaucoma is the disease of Optic nerve. Glaucoma damages
your optic nerve causing blindness. Glaucoma is a leading cause of the
blindness. The rise in fluid pressure inside of the eye leads to glaucoma. The
fluid is called "Aquous humour". The problem with the outflow of
Aquous humour cause the pressure inside the eye ball to rise up.The pressure
inside the eye is called Intra Ocular Pressure(IOP).This start the damaging
cascade to the retina (Nerve fibre layer). Finally optic nerve is damaged. The
damage from glaucoma can oftenly be treated.
Types of Glaucoma:
There are two major causes of glaucoma excluding the
systemic, trauma and other minor causes.
Primary open-angle glaucoma(POAG):
The drainage system of the aquous humour forms an angle
like structure which determines the cause of glaucoma. This is the most common
type of glaucoma.

It happens gradually, where the eye does not drain fluid as
well as it should (like a clogged drain).
As a result, eye pressure builds and starts to damage the
optic nerve.
This type of glaucoma is painless and causes no vision
changes at first.Regular eye exams are important to find early signs of damage
to their optic nerve.
Angle-closure glaucoma / Narrow-angle glaucoma(ACG)
The colorful part of eye called as "IRIS" when
becomes a hurdle in the drainage, it cause "ACG". The angle becomes
lesser than normal. The fluid cannot make it path out of the eyeball. The
production doesn't stop while drainage is stopped.This is a emergency condition
as pressure rises quickly.
How serious is glaucoma?
Glaucoma is a silent killer of the eyes. It could lead to
blindness in hours. If you have ACG, it is an emergency condition that needs
treatment as soon as possible.
What is the average age to get glaucoma?
People over age 60 are at increased risk for this disease.
African Americans, however, are at increased risk after age 40. The risk of
developing glaucoma increases slightly with each year of age.
Can you go blind if you have glaucoma?
Yes, Glaucoma causes blindness. The rise in pressure inside
the eyeball damage the optic nerve. The damage is irreversible. It is better to
have regular eye check up. Your eye doctor can help you prevent from attacks of
glaucoma.
How long does it take to go blind from glaucoma?
One of the more recent studies published in 2013 estimated
that 4 in 10 patients diagnosed with open angle glaucoma (POAG) go blind in one
eye, and 1 out of 6 (~16%) go blind in both eyes.
Patient with "ACG" go blind within hours if the
Intra Ocular pressure is not reduced by medication.
What happens if you have glaucoma?
If you have glaucoma, You will ultimately go blind in hours
if you have sudden attack of IOP rise or you could go blind without even
knowing when you have POAG.
What vitamins are good for glaucoma?
Food containing
Omega-3 fatty acid, Food Containing zinc, Vitamin D, Vitamin A, Vitamin E, Vitamin
C, Lutin and Zeaxanthin are the most
important nutrients that are good for glaucoma.
What foods are good for glaucoma?
or
What foods to eat to lower eye pressure?
Eat foods like
spinach, collard greens, kale,yellow corn, okra, broccoli, Brussels
sprouts, mango, green beans, sweet potatoes, lima beans, squash,green peppers,
citrus fruits, tomatoes, broccoli, strawberries,eggs, fortified cereals, fruit,
wheat germ, green leafy vegetables, nuts, nut oils, vegetable oils,carrots,
mangoes, milk, egg yolks, oysters, red meat, poultry, beans, nuts, certain
seafood, whole grains,Wild salmon, sardines, walnuts, and flaxseed oil.
What not to eat
if you have glaucoma?
Foods High in Saturated Fats and Trans Fats, Caffeine, Carbohydrates,
Alcoholic beverages.
Can
glaucoma be reversed?
We hope one day vision restoration
for glaucoma will be available. The damage to optic nerve cannot be reversed.
Blindness cannot be reversed in any condition.
What
are the symptoms of glaucoma in humans?
POAG is
totally asymptomatic.
In case the of
ACG,Patient has some major symptoms :
- Your vision is
suddenly blurry
- You have severe
eye pain
- You have a
headache
- You feel sick to
your stomach (nausea)
- You throw up
(vomit)
- You see
rainbow-colored rings or halos around lights
What
is the first sign of glaucoma?
Your eye doctor
examines the eye and finds out the change in shape of angle.
patient with
POAG has major changes in the color, shape, depth, size of the head of Optic
Nerve also called as Optic disc.
Can
glaucoma be caused by stress?
Stress
may play a part in the precipitation of acute closed-angle glaucoma because
Intraocular pressure (IOP) can be affected by the emotional state of
the patient says a study journal by "US NIH".
Can
glaucoma be stopped?
While there are
no known ways of preventing glaucoma, blindness or significant vision loss
from glaucoma can be prevented if the disease is recognized
in the early stages. Glaucoma medications slow the progression of glaucoma by
reducing elevated intraocular pressure (IOP) to prevent damage to the optic
nerve.
How do you avoid getting glaucoma?
- Get regular eye examination.
- Know your family's eye health history
- Take prescribed eyedrops only
- Wear eye protection
- Do regular exercise
- Avoid bad eating habits
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