The eye disease "Glaucoma" is considered the most common chronic eye condition, with elevated intraocular pressure being the main symptom. If the pressure inside the eyeball is not lowered to normal levels in a timely manner, the optic nerve may be damaged, potentially leading to irreversible blindness.
Causes
The main causes of elevated intraocular pressure are disturbances in the drainage of fluid within the eye. There are three types of this disease: primary, congenital, and secondary glaucoma. Primary glaucoma is most often found in individuals over 40 years old without visible causes and with previously good vision. Congenital glaucoma usually involves developmental anomalies of the eyeballs during the embryonic period (for example, dysgenesis of part of the frontal section), as well as the consequences of various eye diseases (tumors, inflammations, injuries). Causes may lie in traumas sustained before or after birth. Secondary glaucoma arises from the consequences of previously experienced primary glaucoma of the eyeball.
Symptoms of Glaucoma
Typically, individuals with glaucoma experience blurred vision, pain, sharp discomfort, heaviness in the eyeballs, and restricted visibility. One of the symptoms is significant vision loss in the dark, and when looking at bright light, "rainbow-colored circles" may be observed.
Diagnosis of Glaucoma in Israel
Timely diagnosis is a fundamental element of successful treatment. Doctors, using modern equipment, have identified several main methods to diagnose glaucoma:
- examination using a computer perimeter
- calculation of the refraction of the optical system of the eye
- detection of elevated intraocular pressure
- ultrasound examination
- gonioscopy to determine the structure of the angles of the anterior chamber.
Treatment of Glaucoma in Israel
There are four different methods for treating glaucoma:
- Medication: primarily eye drops, which may be used throughout a person's life from the moment treatment is prescribed.
- Laser surgery on the eyeball: mainly prescribed only if medication or drop treatment has not achieved the desired effect.
- Trabeculoplasty: performed after laser surgery, using microscopic burns on the surface of the diaphragm (trabecula).
- Laser iridectomy: this surgery significantly reduces fluid production inside the eyeball; cyclo-coagulation is applied only if the other therapeutic methods have not yielded the necessary results.
Prevention
Doctors strongly recommend that individuals over the age of forty have an ophthalmologist consultation-examination at least twice a year. Currently, there are no methods that can completely prevent glaucoma, but timely visits to an ophthalmologist can significantly influence the progression of the disease.