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just got back from the optometrist who has diagnosed me with glaucoma. I couldn't believe it since i'm only 40 and wants me to go to an eye hospital as soon as possible. Who here is dealing with this problem? It started with my periphereal vision seeing waves & halos in one eye and I'm terrified i'm going to lose my vision.
I'm no authority at all on this, but I think if you've caught it before you actually lose your sight, and you start the treatment immediately (which I believe will be lifelong,) you won't continue to lose sight. You may not get back what you've lost, but once the eye pressure lessens, it will stop pressing on the optic nerve. I would do exactly what your doctor has advised you to do and do it immediately.
I was diagnosed with pre-glaucoma (borderline high eye pressure) several years ago in my mid-40s. I go every 6 months to have my eye pressure checked and once a year to have a field vision test (that tells whether I'm losing any peripheral vision.) In fact, my field vision test is tomorrow.
What saved me is that I have poor eyesight and I had not been to the eye doctor in about 3 years. I was having problems reading close things, so I went thinking she was going to tell me that I have far-sightedness in addition to near-sightedness. Instead, she told me about the borderline high eye pressure. I remember asking her incredulously, " Aren't I way too young for this???" She said no, she often sees it with people in their 40s.
Get it taken care of right away. I'm hoping for the best for you!
cmac thanks for the reply and your kind words! I haven't lost any vision yet but those visual disturbances scared me and knew they weren't normal. He gave me eye drops to lessen the pressure. The pressure in my left eye is way off the charts according to him but he put a drop in my eye and so far as of now my periphereal vision seems normal. I just hope I caught it quick enough.
As a surgery Coordinator for an opth. surgery center I can say early detection is best. This can actually occur in younger individuals especially those with High Bp that has not been stabalized or individuals with diabetes.
IOP or Intra-ocular pressure means for reasons due to high bp, diabetes or at times genetic predispositions that your eye is not expelling liquid (aqueous) as it should therefore putting pressure on the retina and pushing it further and further back all the way to the optic nerve leading to potential and irreversible blindness.
However if your IOP was high and you have been dx normally the first course of action is eye drops to reduce the pressure in your eyes.. This is usually successful in most individuals if they follow the directions as instructed.
If the ocular drops are not working then surgery is recommended. This surgery is usually outpatient and does not require general anesthesia but rather twilight a sedative commonly used with colonoscopys and so forth, the patient is able to respond to the doctor yet has no pain or recollection of the surgery. A trab I believe. They create a little pocket to capture the excess fluid that your eye has not been able to absorb and this little pocket will capture and absorb any excess liquid therefore lowering your iop and stop any further damage to your va (Vision acuity)
Good luck,
DD70
guys thank you to you all for your advice. Today I went to the opthamologist and had to have emergency laser eye surgery! He says it was caught in time but I had some damage to my optic nerve already. The pressure has dropped into a normal range so far but need to go back to get it checked as well as numerous eye drops for the next week or so. Word of advice if you have any visual disturbances or pain in the eye run to a doctor!
guys thank you to you all for your advice. Today I went to the opthamologist and had to have emergency laser eye surgery! He says it was caught in time but I had some damage to my optic nerve already. The pressure has dropped into a normal range so far but need to go back to get it checked as well as numerous eye drops for the next week or so. Word of advice if you have any visual disturbances or pain in the eye run to a doctor!
Good to hear Rob...vision is nothing to toy around with as you stated.
During a standard eye exam the wife's eye pressure was elevated so they scheduled a follow-up glaucoma screening with the optometrist. The conclusion of the exam:
* Eye pressure is elevated in both eyes
* Some minor peripheral vision loss in one eye
* Diagnosis of "potential glaucoma", come back for re-exam in one year
* No treatment necessary at this time
I'm pressuring her to get a second opinion. How can they document that there is some vision loss, but it's only "potential glaucoma" and come back in a year? She has an appointment with her PCP in a few weeks and is going to ask about it then.
During a standard eye exam the wife's eye pressure was elevated so they scheduled a follow-up glaucoma screening with the optometrist. The conclusion of the exam:
* Eye pressure is elevated in both eyes
* Some minor peripheral vision loss in one eye
* Diagnosis of "potential glaucoma", come back for re-exam in one year
* No treatment necessary at this time
I'm pressuring her to get a second opinion. How can they document that there is some vision loss, but it's only "potential glaucoma" and come back in a year? She has an appointment with her PCP in a few weeks and is going to ask about it then.
I was a "glaucoma suspect" with high ocular pressure in both eyes, and some visible changes in the ocular nerves ( ? cupping") for a few years before I was "convicted" of glaucoma, LOL. They had me visit the eye doc twice a year for retinal scans, visual field and IOP checks before I was treated for glaucoma. When they started treatment- with eyedrops that have successfully lowered the IOPs to a normal range, I began visits 3 times a year to check the IOP, and they do a retinal scan, and a visual field check once a year. I haven't noticed any visual changes from the glaucoma, hopefully the treatment has kept that at bay.
I might get a second opinion if I were in your wife's shoes.
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