Glaucoma

The diagnosis of glaucoma can sometimes take several tests in a short period of time or years depending on the stage of the condition. For example, a small puzzle with larger puzzle pieces may be easy to put together; however, a very complicated puzzle with small pieces may take weeks, months, or even years. Luckily, there have been many modern advances to allow your eye doctor to build a comprehensive eye health profile to make the determination whether a patient has glaucoma.

It is not uncommon for patients to inform their eye doctor that tests have been completed in the past. Or patients informing their eye doctor that all the tests were “normal” and there was no sign of glaucoma. Unfortunately, we are dynamic or ever-changing and tests may need to be updated from time to time. Please check with your eye doctor for the next best steps.

• Age: People over the age of 60 have an increased risk
• Refractive Error: Patients that are more nearsighted are more likely to be diagnosed with glaucoma or have an increase in risk.
• Race: Specific populations have a higher incidence such as African Americans, Indigenous People, Hispanic for Open Angle Glaucoma. However, narrow angle glaucoma is more common for Asian descent and Native Alaskan populations. While Japanese descent individuals are more likely to develop normal tension glaucoma.
• Family History of Glaucoma: Family inheritance is common in glaucoma.
• Systemic Diseases: Patients with hypertension, diabetes, and heart disease have an increased risk for developing glaucoma.
• Physical Injuries/Trauma: Injuries to the eye should always be closely followed by an eye doctor to rule out damage.
• Corticosteroid Use and other medications: Using corticosteroids for prolonged periods of time has been associated with an increased risk of developing glaucoma.

• Primary Open-Angle Glaucoma (POAG): POAG is the most common type with a makeup of 90% of all types of glaucoma. The eye’s drainage structure is often the cause of increased eye pressure leading to vision loss if not detected, managed, and treated by your eye care provider.
• Angle-Closure Glaucoma: Angle-closure is when the drainage structure of the eye suddenly becomes blocked (between the cornea and the iris). This is considered a medical eye emergency and requires immediate diagnosis and treatment with both medical and surgical means. Symptoms often include: blurred vision, diffuse redness, eye pain, vomiting/nausea, and a throbbing sensation.
• Secondary Glaucoma: Secondary glaucoma develops when the eye’s intraocular pressure increases. Causes of secondary glaucoma can be as follows: an eye injury, eye inflammation, medications (systemic or eye drops), and other eye diseases that may lead to glaucoma. These eye conditions are often detected during an annual eye examination or emergent based upon circumstance.
• Normal Tension or Low-Tension Glaucoma: Normal tension glaucoma is often insidious, as eye pressures are within the “normal” accepted range. However, the optic nerve still becomes damaged even with “normal” eye pressures. This condition is not well understood but the working theories suggest that the optic nerve is more susceptible to damage or less blood supple to the optic nerve itself. Either way, this condition must be closely monitored for patients at risk for normal tension glaucoma.