Glaucoma Specialist

What is glaucoma?

Glaucoma is a condition affecting the health of your eyes that causes vision loss and eventual blindness with time. While you can’t reverse any vision loss from glaucoma, you can slow down its progression and prevent total blindness with early treatment and care. 

Glaucoma develops when the pressure inside your eyes is too high, gradually damaging the optic nerve in each of your eyes. There are several different types of glaucoma, but the two most prevalent are:

Open-angle glaucoma

Open-angle glaucoma is the most common type and develops slowly because of an ineffective drainage system inside your eyes. 

Angle-closure glaucoma

Angle-closure glaucoma develops if your iris bulges forward and partially blocks your eye’s drainage system. This can happen slowly (chronic angle-closure glaucoma) or very quickly (acute angle-closure glaucoma). Acute angle-closure glaucoma is considered an emergency and needs immediate medical care. 

Other rare types of glaucoma include congenital glaucoma, neovascular glaucoma, pigmentary glaucoma, traumatic glaucoma, pseudoexfoliative glaucoma, and iridocorneal endothelial syndrome glaucoma. If you have normal-tension glaucoma, you have similar optic nerve damage without the pressure changes characteristic of other types of glaucoma. 

How can I tell if I have glaucoma?

All types of glaucoma result in similar symptoms. However, the beginning stages of glaucoma usually come without any discernible symptoms. Without regular eye exams, you can lose a significant portion of your vision without realizing anything is wrong.

If you have open-angle glaucoma, you might notice blind spots or patches in your peripheral vision first and tunnel vision in later stages. You might have acute angle-closure glaucoma and should contact Primary Eyecare Associates right away if you experience:

• A severe headache
• Pain in your eyes
• Nausea or vomiting
• Eye redness
• Light halos in your vision
• Noticeable vision blurring

Without a rapid treatment response, acute angle-closure glaucoma can lead to blindness very quickly. 

With routine comprehensive eye exams, your optometrist at Primary Eyecare Associates can catch glaucoma very early and provide treatment right away.

How is glaucoma treated?

Your experienced optometrist at Primary Eyecare Associates creates a personalized care plan to treat your glaucoma and prevent further vision decline. To preserve your vision, they might recommend:

Medication

Certain prescription eye drops and some oral medications can lower the pressure inside your eyes to relieve your optic nerves from the strain. 

Regular eye exams

Primary Eyecare Associates can help you decide how often to come in to monitor your glaucoma and its treatment. 

Surgery

Primary Eyecare Associates can refer you to a surgical specialist if medication can’t effectively lower the pressure in your eyes. With laser surgery, they can improve the functioning of your eyes’ drainage system by removing blockages. 

To schedule a routine screening for glaucoma or an appointment to address symptoms, call Primary Eyecare Associates, or use the online booking tool today.