Various Facts About Glaucoma San Antonio

By Eloise Hewitt


Glaucoma refers not just to one eye disease but a group of eye conditions that bring about damage of the optic nerve. This may result to vision loss. When there is too high pressure within the eye, known as intraocular pressure, this is likely to lead to eye damage. It is among the leading causes of blindness and damages vision slowly in such a way that one may not realize the loss of vision until later in the advanced stages. When considering treatment of glaucoma San Antonio residents should know all details involved.

The most common type is the primary-angle glaucoma. It has no noticeable signs or symptoms except for the fact that the seriousness increases gradually. When diagnosis is done early and treatment scheduled, damage to the optic nerve is minimized and any vision loss related to it avoided. The eyes should be examined regularly and this should include measurement of intraocular pressure.

The two most common forms of this infection, that is angle closure and open-angle, have symptoms that are very varied. The two main symptoms of the latter type are gradual loss of peripheral vision in both eyes and tunnel vision when it is in the advanced stages. The former has such symptoms as blurred vision, eye pain, nausea, vomiting and sudden onset of disturbance of vision. When the cause is unknown, the condition is referred to as primary. When the causes can be traced, it is referred to as secondary.

Patients should not wait for symptoms to be noticeable. The key to early detection is to go for regular eye check-ups. In case one realizes severe pain in the eyes, strong headaches, blurred vision, nausea or halos around the eye, immediate care should be sought. Otherwise, one may risk seeking medical attention when it is too late.

There is the fluid known as aqueous humor that flows in and out of eyes. When the fluid builds up inside the eye, there is increased pressure. This fluid gets out of the eye via a drainage system that is at the angle where the iris and cornea meet. If in any case the drainage system does not work well, then the fluid does not filter normally from the eyes. There is thus pressure build-up in the eyes.

Among the many causes of glaucoma, there are risk factors that enhance possibility of suffering from it. One such factor is age, with people over 40 the most affected when it comes to angle-closure glaucoma. For the African Americans, there is a higher risk of developing the condition, plus it takes place in younger people. Mexican-Americans over 60 years are at increased risk.

People that come from families that have history of glaucoma are more at risk. Further, there is a genetic link to it, which means some individuals are more susceptible than others. Diabetes, heart disease and high blood pressure are among the medical conditions which increase risk of infection.

The main aim of treatment is reduction of pressure in the eyes. For treatment of this condition, the doctors may lower pressure of eyes, improve drainage of the eyes and also reduce amount of fluid produced in the eyes. It cannot be cured and damages resulting from it cannot be reversed. However, early detection prevents vision loss.




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