Glaucoma

[JohnS]

Heading to the doctors office now to get checked. This is the second year that my eye doctor has sent me, last year I didnt go and he said I really needed to go this time! Im not going to lie im alittle freaked out about this!

Anyone have it that could shed some light for me. Thanks

[BCorn]

I just went through this with my 9 year old son. They said they saw something that made him a high risk for glaucoma. went through several tests....they had us really worried. After the last test they said everything is fine. Now they just recommend a yearly check up. From what the told me, early detection is the key. Glaucoma is too much pressure on the eyeball. The pressure can be handled with eye drops in many cases. The key is to keep the pressure down as if it get too high it can cause irreversible damage to the nerves. It sounds to me like they send many people in for precautionary check and turns out they are fine. That is probably the case with you. I would just go get the test to put your mind at ease. Good luck and let us know how it turns out.

[redleif]

I was diagnosed with glaucoma 4 months ago. I'm 69. If left untreated it can cause blindness due to high pressure which damages the optic nerve. I had no damage. They gave me drops (Lumigan). One per night each eye took care of the problem. Piece of cake. Go to the doctor!!

[JohnS]

I just went through this with my 9 year old son. They said they saw something that made him a high risk for glaucoma. went through several tests....they had us really worried. After the last test they said everything is fine. Now they just recommend a yearly check up. From what the told me, early detection is the key. Glaucoma is too much pressure on the eyeball. The pressure can be handled with eye drops in many cases. The key is to keep the pressure down as if it get too high it can cause irreversible damage to the nerves. It sounds to me like they send many people in for precautionary check and turns out they are fine. That is probably the case with you. I would just go get the test to put your mind at ease. Good luck and let us know how it turns out.

If thats the case and its nothing somebody is liable to get punched in the throat!...

[docswanson]

Glaucoma is a group of eye diseases where the optic nerve (think usb port between the eye and the brain) starts to lose nerve tissue (think soil erosion). We each are born with millions of nerves in the back of the eye, but some patients have enough erosion over the years, that it can irreversibly cause vision loss. Modern technology allows your doctors to catch glaucoma much earlier, and therefore avoid vision loss. Also, the drops and surgical technique used to treat glaucoma are much better than even a few years ago. Treatment is geared toward lowering the eye pressure by around 30%. Most glaucoma patients are successfully treated using one or more eye drops. Glaucoma patients are unaware of vision changes until the late stages of glaucoma due to the fact that glaucoma damages the peripheral part of the vision first, then works its way toward the central vision last. The key to successful glaucoma management is early detection. Your doctors will put you through a series of tests (such as OCT, Visual Fields, Visual Evoked Potential, Pachymetry, and others) to gather baseline information, then upon follow up testing, determine any changes over time. Once a loss of nerve tissue is confirmed or ruled out, your doctor will develop a treatment plan customized to each eye. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to email me.

With Best Regards,

Chris Swanson OD

[JohnS]

Glaucoma is a group of eye diseases where the optic nerve (think usb port between the eye and the brain) starts to lose nerve tissue (think soil erosion). We each are born with millions of nerves in the back of the eye, but some patients have enough erosion over the years, that it can irreversibly cause vision loss. Modern technology allows your doctors to catch glaucoma much earlier, and therefore avoid vision loss. Also, the drops and surgical technique used to treat glaucoma are much better than even a few years ago. Treatment is geared toward lowering the eye pressure by around 30%. Most glaucoma patients are successfully treated using one or more eye drops. Glaucoma patients are unaware of vision changes until the late stages of glaucoma due to the fact that glaucoma damages the peripheral part of the vision first, then works its way toward the central vision last. The key to successful glaucoma management is early detection. Your doctors will put you through a series of tests (such as OCT, Visual Fields, Visual Evoked Potential, Pachymetry, and others) to gather baseline information, then upon follow up testing, determine any changes over time. Once a loss of nerve tissue is confirmed or ruled out, your doctor will develop a treatment plan customized to each eye. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to email me.

With Best Regards,

Chris Swanson OD

Thanks for the info doc. Your not in dallad by chance are you?

[docswanson]

Lawton, Oklahoma. Wish I was closer, I could take a look.

[Hoyt Man]

My eye dr caught my glaucoma pretty quick. I use eye drops to keep the pressure down. You can't feel the pressure and won't know until it's to late. Get checked you only have one set of eyes.

[SaltwaterSlick]

My wife and both my kids have it. EARLY DETECTION is the key to a successful treatment as Doc Swanson posted. The reason your eye doctor is insisting on the visit is that likely you have indications of risk or other detected issues. It is important to get a baseline from which to work. Subsequent visits can compare test results of future exams to the baseline. This will allow your care givers to detect any deviation from the baseline. In the case of my wife and kids, eventually none of the combination of drops were successful in controlling the pressure in their eyes. They have all had surgeries in their eyes to put a "lap" valve in the eye. This surgery is day surgery and it eliminates the need for drops. It has been very successful for them and their Glaucoma is very well controlled now. Of special note, it is very important for you to know if you have the disease or not as many other medications and even diet issues can aggravate the symptoms and worsen the effects of the disease.

DO YOURSELF AND YOUR FAMILY A FAVOR AND GET CHECKED OUT! (otherwise you best enroll yourself in "blindman's school so you'll know how to act later on)

[JohnS]

Thanks for the info doc. Your not in dallad by chance are you?

There is a swanson at this office thats why I asked

[docswanson]

There is a swanson at this office thats why I asked

He/She must be alright then!

[JohnS]

Well the doc said that my pressures are fine but he wants to keep a close eye on my optic nerve. I have a follow up in dec. He said he will then decide if I need to start drops