Glaucoma Treatments

Glaucoma is a disease that causes damage to your eye’s optic nerves. Genetics play a large role in this disease’s development. The damage is usually due to increased pressure in your eye or fluid buildup. If this pressure gets high enough, it’ll permanently damage the nerves and alter your vision so glaucoma treatments are critical to prevent vision loss.

Your eye contains over one million nerve fibres that function to connect your brain to your retina. Any damage to these optic nerves can lead to vision loss and blindness if you don’t treat it. However, early detection and glaucoma treatments can help protect your nerves from damage and prevent vision loss.

Glaucoma Treatments Available

There are a few treatment options for people diagnosed with Glaucoma. Your eye doctor will help you decide on the best route.

1. Medicated Eye Drops— Your ophthalmologist can prescribe medicated eye drops that are specially designed to help control the pressure in your eyes. For the best results, you should add the eye drops and close your eyes for a minute or two. This will allow the drops to get into your bloodstream and into your eye. It’s also important that you take them exactly as prescribed to maximise their effectiveness.
2. Medications— If the eye drops aren’t effective enough as glaucoma treatments at controlling the pressure and fluid buildup in your eye, you may take medications as well. The pills absorb into your bloodstream and go straight to your eye. They help to turn down your eye’s faucet. In turn, this reduces the amount of fluid your eye produces. You will take these pills two or four times a day, as your doctor recommends.
3. Surgery— For people who aren’t getting the results they want with eye drops or medications, surgery may be the best option as a treatment for glaucoma. Laser surgery is very popular, and it usually takes between 10 and 15 minutes per eye. The laser slowly modifies your eye’s drain shape to help ensure that it drains properly and reduces the pressure in your eye. There are a few different types of surgery available, and your eye doctor will help you pick the best option.

Glaucoma is a serious eye disease that you want to catch and start glaucoma treatments early on to reduce the amount of optic nerve damage and vision loss. Sitting down for a consultation with a leading ophthalmologist like Dr. Moshegov is the first step. Contact us today to set up your consultation regarding glaucoma treatments and protect your vision!