Will you go blind if you have glaucoma?

Glaucoma is a condition that affects almost 3 million Americans. Glaucoma is a group of eye diseases that can cause loss of vision and blindness due to damage to the optic nerve in your eye. Damage to the optic nerve, the nerve that sends images we see to our brain, happens when there is inflammation within the eye and a build-up of pressure. Often, you cannot feel it as it is happening.

While glaucoma is incurable and its effects can’t be reversed, there are treatments to prevent further damage and retain your eyesight.

Four types of glaucoma

There are four types of glaucoma:

• Open-angle glaucoma: most common; tends to be hereditary; unknown cause; occurs when pressure within the eye increases and pushes on the optic nerve
• Closed-angle glaucoma: medical emergency; can be triggered by dilating eye drops and medications; occurs when fluid in the eye is blocked and there is a severe rise in pressure within the eye
• Congenital glaucoma: occurs in babies; often hereditary and present at birth; caused by the underdevelopment of the eye
• Secondary glaucoma: caused by certain medications such as corticosteroids, eye diseases/injuries, and diabetes; open and closed-angle glaucoma can be considered secondary with a known cause

Treatments for glaucoma

Once you’ve been diagnosed with glaucoma, you shouldn’t start to worry about when you’re going to lose your eyesight. Thanks to medical advancements, there are many ways to prevent the condition from worsening.

• Eye drops: prostaglandins, alpa-adrenergic agonists, beta-blockers, carbonic anhydrase inhibitors, rho kinase inhibitors, and miotic or cholinergic agents; all of which work to reduce fluid retention within the eye, maintain an outflow for blocked fluid, and reduce eye pressure
• Oral medications: carbonic anhydrase inhibitor; usually prescribed when eye drops aren’t singularly doing the trick; works the same as eye drops 
• Laser therapy: Laser therapy can be suggested before and/or after eye drops, especially if the use of eye drops has slowed the condition down; laser therapy is used to improve drainage in the eye.
• Trabeculectomy: a surgical procedure in which an opening in the white of your eye is created for extra fluid drainage 
• Drainage tubes: a surgical procedure in which a small tube is inserted to drain excess fluid to decrease eye pressure
• Minimally invasive glaucoma surgery (MIGS): less risk than trabeculectomy or draining tubes; surgical procedure to lower built-up eye pressure; often combined with cataract surgery where an artificial lens is inserted for better eyesight

Glaucoma can be a debilitating condition if left untreated, and often, there are no symptoms to warn you of whether or not you have the disease. The best way of prevention is to talk with your doctor about your eye health history and rule out (or become more cautious of) certain signs you may deal with. You can never be too safe, especially when it comes to something as important as your senses!