Glaucoma

Glaucoma is one of the most dangerous eye diseases in the industrialised countries. The most important cause for glaucoma is an elevated intraocular pressure (IOP). It results from the obstruction of the outflow of aqueous humor.

Since new aqueous humor is constantly produced, high pressure is built up and exerted over the eyeball. The eyeball, being pressed against the retina, begins to exert pressure on the optic nerve (“squeezes” it). If this pressure is maintained for a longer period of time, the optic nerve suffers a lasting damage.

This damage is then irreparable. Therefore it is very important to identify and treat this increased intraocular pressure in time.

Only in very seldom cases does the patient notice the disease, since glaucoma is painless – which in turn is the problem. A loss of visual field, due to the damaged optic nerve, remains unnoticed at first, since it only progresses very slowly. The visual acuity in the centre of the visual field is still maintained for a long time. However, it becomes increasingly difficult to perceive objects on the borders of this area. This can lead to dangerous situations, for example during traffic.

In the later stages of the disease, the visual field becomes increasingly restricted, in the final stages glaucoma can lead to blindness. Therefore, it is important to have your eyes and the intraocular pressure examined yearly from the age of 40 onwards. These preventive checkups do not cause any pain whatsoever.

Glaucoma is a chronic disease and thus incurable. Already prevailing damages cannot be reversed. Hence, early diagnosis and an immediate therapy with effective medications are all the more important. The aim of the treatment is to avoid any further damages.

The treatment, like for all chronic diseases, has to be conducted throughout the patient’s entire life. The success depends significantly on the patient’s cooperation.  The most important task of the glaucoma medication therapy is to decrease the intraocular pressure. There is a large variety of remedies available, most of which are applied as eye drops.