Glaucoma

In this disease, the optic nerve is damaged due to increased intraocular pressure and the person’s vision is reduced. The amount of vision that is lost due to glaucoma is irreversible, but with early treatment, more damage can be prevented and if left untreated, there is a possibility of complete loss of peripheral vision and vision becomes in the form of a barrel. That is, the central part of the visual field remains and its peripheral parts are destroyed, and in the further development of the disease, the central vision is also lost and the patient suffers from complete blindness. The patient should know that this disease needs permanent treatment and follow-up. And it is a chronic disease. It is simply due to the increase in intraocular pressure due to the increase in the pressure of the aqueous humor, or the substance inside the eye, and when the outflow of this fluid from very small pores around the iris (colored circle of the eye) is disturbed, it increases the aqueous pressure.

Types of glaucoma

1. Primary open-angle glaucoma: which is the most common type of glaucoma where the pores around the iris are open. But they do not work properly, the symptoms are not sudden and the patient is not in pain.
2. Acute closed-angle glaucoma: Suddenly the pores around the iris are closed and there is sudden eye pain, aura around the lights, redness of the eyes and very high pressure in the eyes, nausea, vomiting and a sudden decrease in vision.
3. Chronic closed-angle glaucoma: The process is similar to acute closed-angle glaucoma but is slower.
4. Congenital glaucoma: which is very rare and is usually associated with other developmental disorders in the eye.

We cannot predict a definitive cure for glaucoma, but with medication and surgery, its progression can be prevented and annoying symptoms such as pain can be removed from the patient. Glaucoma can be treated with laser or incision surgery, and laser treatment or surgery is the next step after medication.

Surgical method

Laser treatment or laser trabeculoplasty: which helps to drain the fluid from the eye and laser treatment is when the drug treatment has not controlled the disease. Before starting, it is anesthetized using special eye drops. The ophthalmologist puts a special lens on the eye. A beam of high-energy light is reflected on the reticular tissue of the eye angle. The patient sees light spots in green and red. The laser creates 50 to 100 burn points at equal distances. These burns stretch the exit pores in the reticular tissue, thus opening the pores and expelling the clear fluid better. Then some drops are given to relieve the inflammation inside the eye. It should be noted that in this treatment method, the probability of recurrence is high and more than half of the patients experience increased intraocular pressure after two years.

Surgery: In this type of procedure, a new hole is created to remove fluid from the eye. It is recommended that the patient first undergo medication and laser therapy and, if they were unsuccessful, do the surgery. In surgery, local anesthetic drops and sedatives are used. Then injections are given to numb around the eyes. The ophthalmologist removes a small piece of tissue around the cornea, creating a new canal to drain fluid from inside the eye. The surgery can also be performed under general anesthesia. In the surgical procedure, the patient is expected to be hospitalized for three days and to be monitored for about a week. The patient’s level of awareness should be raised to know that glaucoma is a chronic and permanent disease. But with new drugs and treatments, if there is constant follow-up, there is no disruption in the normal process of life, but if neglected, there is a possibility of blindness.