Glaucoma Causes and Symptoms

by Mike Smith
Creating Lifestyle

Glaucoma is an eye disorder that can damage vision to the extent that, if not discovered and treated, often leads to complete blindness.
The condition affects millions of people around the world and is a leading cause of blindness. However, when treated, it is possible to slow its progression and even prevent it entirely.

Causes:

There are several different causes for glaucoma and these can vary from person to person. It is generally related to increased pressure within the eye; for instance, high blood pressure may aggravate a glaucoma condition so it's important for anyone suffering from hypertension to visit an eye doctor and be tested for glaucoma. Regular eye care is important but for those with an elevated risk of glaucoma it is critical that their eyes are tested annually.

Genetics can also dictate who is at risk and, while it is not the only cause, it does lead to an increased risk if a sufferer's parents have it. It is important, where at all possible, to know the overall ocular health of biological parents.
The condition can also stem from the prolonged use of steroids and ocular trauma.

Symptoms:

The primary glaucoma symptom is a gradually progressive loss of the field of vision. This typically means that over time the things which appear at the outer edges of a person's vision will begin to be cloudy and, in time, the cloudiness will get worse and shrink the field of vision until full blindness occurs. Many sufferers of glaucoma describe their sight as `looking down a tunnel.' This is because the outer edges are cloudy or dark while they can still see things which are in a straight line of sight.

It may take years for a Glaucoma sufferer to notice that there is a problem with their eyes as the progression can often be quite slow. Because of this, regular eye check ups are critical, giving the doctor the opportunity to diagnose glaucoma and start treatment earlier rather than later. Without these checkups it is often not until the condition progresses to the point where it is interfering with day to day life that it is noticed; and at this point it may be too late for a cure, even though it might still be possible to slow its progression.

No matter what the cause, if left untreated, the end result is almost always complete blindness. Fortunately, there are drugs which can reduce the pressure on the eye and slow the progression of the glaucoma significantly, in some cases even stopping it altogether.

If caught early there may be no noticeable loss of vision and life can continue as normal, taking regular medication. Anyone who has been diagnosed with glaucoma should continue to have annual eye examinations to make sure it is not progressing.

Article submitted Monday, December 19, 2011 & read 1 times.

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