Services Offered: Glaucoma

Boston University Eye Associates glaucoma service provides comprehensive medical and surgical management for glaucoma. Glaucoma is a complicated disease in which damage to the optic nerve results in vision loss.  Elevated eye pressure is an important risk factor in the development of glaucoma.  In the early stages, glaucoma typically has no obvious symptoms thus it has been called “the silent thief of sight”. Therefore early diagnosis and treatment is important, since it can halt or prevent optic nerve damage.  Risk factors for glaucoma include: African-American and Asian race, age over 60, family history of glaucoma, steroid use (i.e. for asthma), and eye injury.  Other possible risk factors include: extensive blood loss, sleep apnea, raynaud’s phenomenon, nearsightedness, hypertension, and diabetes.

Glaucoma can only be diagnosed through a routine complete eye exam.  Therefore it is important to have your eyes checked regularly. As part of the examination you may also undergo testing of peripheral vision as well as have photographs taken of the optic nerve.  There are two main types of glaucoma:

  • Open-angle Glaucoma – Open-angle glaucoma is the more common type of the diesase.  There is resistance preventing the drainage of the fluid inside eye.  This form of glaucoma is usually without symptoms.  It is treated by eye drops, laser, or surgery or mostly commonly a combination of treatments.  When untreated it can lead to blindness.
  • Closed-angle Glaucoma – Closed-angle glaucoma is when the eye pressure is elevated. Typical symptoms include: eye pain, light sensitivity, blurred vision, headache, and nausea/vomiting.  This is an eye emergency.  The eye pressure must be reduced immediately.
 

Courtesy: National Eye Institute, National Institutes of Health

 
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