The second leading cause for blindness that rules the optic market especially in the US according to a study has been revealed to be nothing other than glaucoma. If you have been told about your glaucoma acting up, consider yourself one amongst the many millions of glaucoma patients that walk in to an optic institution and come out with a prescription for glaucoma.
For all those yet not familiar with the term, glaucoma is a complex condition of the optic or eye nerves which due to optic nerve damage can progressively lead you to blindness, irreversible in nature. This is not your simple power ups and downs that can change with a mere change of lens, it includes fluid pressure within the eye itself due to which a condition occurs, the consequences being loss of vision.
This problem when further dissected revealed that our eyes contain a mini spec called ‘anterior chamber’ right in front of our eyes through which fluids come and go. These fluids are known to moisturize the nearby tissues. When the glaucoma acts up, this fluid flow becomes constricted, i.e., less in amount than what it should. This results in a buildup of more and more fluid behind the spec which creates an unnecessary pressure creating glaucoma.
There are mainly two vast sections that glaucoma can be divided into. Open angle and closed angle glaucoma. Open angle glaucoma also termed as chronic glaucoma is a submissive type where it stays on the under notes slowly progressing. This type is usually unnoticed and hard to detect unless the final hit occurs, i.e. , vision loss. In case of closed angle or acute glaucoma, the pain and the blurry vision forces one to go for an eye checkup which means the treatment is immediate causing the condition to reverse while there is still time.
Then there are other sections like pigmentary glaucoma where the name speaks for itself and the low tension glaucoma where even if fluid pressure is constant, optic nerves due to being over sensitive might get damaged.
Causes And Symptoms Of Glaucoma:
This article tells about what are the glaucoma symptoms and causes which are useful know to this problem.
Causes Of Glaucoma:
There are however some factors that are responsible for causing glaucoma.
1. Fluid Pressure:
The first option as discussed before belongs to the fluid pressure where our eyes just in between the iris and cornea harbors a spec called ‘anterior chamber’ through which a certain amount of fluid flows out nourishing and moistening the nearby tissues. When this fluid flow becomes restricted or lessens, the obstruction causes a pressure build up since the fluids keep on piling up causing glaucoma.
2. Iris Problem:
Often at times there might be some defect or disturbance with the iris in our eyes which causes the iris to protrude itself blocking the spec present between it and the cornea. This blockage then results in a pressure buildup. This is one of the main causes for glaucoma problem.
3. Age:
After you cross your mid-life that is step into your 50s, there is a strong possibility that you may come down with glaucoma which is a common disease the possibilities of which grow with age. A whopping 85% of UK and US citizens in their mature age has been diagnosed with glaucoma. This can be blamed on inefficiency of the optic organs and nerves due to growing age.
4. Pigmentation:
Our iris is the color giver of the pupils which makes pigmentation a must in the iris. Often at times the doctor’s have noticed that these pigments available in small fractions and specs block up the drainage system or the spec causing the restriction of proper fluid flow. Heavy physical activity or strong optic pressure can be a reason for this haphazard pigment movement.
5. Short Sightedness:
Open angle glaucoma is a strong possibility if you are suffering from myopia or short sightedness. This is why it is often requested and recommended to go for routine eye checkups since this dormant gene might start acting up one day leaving no space for a proper cure. Being chronic in nature and hard to detect, this will surely cause a vision loss.
6. Heredity:
Often at times one can only blame the past genes and DNAs that flow through her body if discovered with glaucoma. Like many other diseases, glaucoma too is based on family history. If you have a large list of grandfathers suffering with glaucoma, chances are you will continue the family legacy.
7. Drainage Of Eye Narrows:
This is one of the most popular glaucoma causes. The drainage of the eye narrows causes angle-closure glaucoma. The eye narrows become blocked and there might be vision loss due to this blockage in the eyes. The drainage angle may be closed off and this will make your condition dangerous. One who is already suffering from severe eye issues is more likely to be affected with glaucoma. The symptoms of acute angle glaucoma generally include severe eye pain along with nausea, and even sleep walking. Unless you go and see a professional eye clinic you will be experiencing the sudden loss of sight and temporary blindness, senselessness. Glaucoma can make your life miserable.
8. High Eye Pressure:
High eye pressure many sometimes lead to glaucoma. If you put excess pressure on the eyes, then this might result in glaucoma or temporary loss of sight. The eyes are one of the most important parts of our body and it is the eyes which assist us in seeing the world around us You can solve this issue by providing the eyes with suitable rest and sleeping a little more during the days when you experience severe eye problems. If you are using a spectacle for vision, then go check your eye power and keep your spectacle glass power on point.
9. Over Sensitive Optic Nerve:
Have you ever thought about this. Yes, this is for real. One can face optic nerve caused low-tension glaucoma which is one of the many types of glaucoma and a dangerous one as well. One bad fact about this type of glaucoma is that even some experts fully cannot figure out how to stop this glaucoma. It is totally confusing. It can happen even if the eyes are not pressurized. Even when the eye pressure is normal, the optic nerve can still happen. This means that your optic nerves are a bit over sensitive.
The blood vessels might also be contaminated with atherosclerosis which is further supplied to the optic nerve. This is one of the many causes of glaucoma which has been caused due to the sensitivity of the optic nerve. One can fix this issue by visiting a professional eye practitioner and can also make some changes in his/her diet and including foods good for the eyes such as certain fish proteins are really good for the eyes.
10. Deterioration Of The Optic Nerve:
Among the many glaucoma causes, this one is pretty popular. When the optic nerves are damaged vigorously, that is when you experience glaucoma symptoms. This is one of the most common symptoms of glaucoma and cannot be fixed easily. You will need to take some eye drops and even some medicines for fixing your current eye condition.
The optic nerve is really gentle and can easily get damaged. Hence, you will have to make sure that proper care of the eyes are taken and the optic nerve should be damaged any further than it already is.
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11. Discomfort:
Glaucoma is a gradual process and does not affect you within months of it occurring, but what gives it away can be a slight change in your eye power or some sort of discomfort which can be very fatal if left untreated. A lot of times a slight shift of power is not taken seriously which causes the glaucoma to expand freely.
Signs And Symptoms Of Glaucoma:
However before this can act up there are certain symptoms which might help you get a early cure before vision loss is the only consequence. Some of the common signs symptoms to judge glaucoma are enlisted below.
1. Pain:
In case of acute glaucoma, a stinging pain long persisting might be a cue. This is why closed angle glaucoma is better since with the pain the frequent doctor visits increase which ensures the deal being taken care of. This eye pain might mainly attract the center of the eye.
2. Vision Difficulty:
With gradual glaucoma comes blurriness in vision. This may even be in the form of power shift or power change which might make the vision shaky and unclear. This is one of the major symptoms of glaucoma problem.
3. Redness:
With the discomforts felt in the eye one of the main physical change in the eye would be it turning a pinkish hue. This at time occurs due to tiredness which is why wait for a prolonged reaction. If by the second or third day the redness persists, go for a checkup.
4. Halo Formation:
The iris is present in the middle of the pupil and it is from here a weird white halo might seem to form, floating right before your eyes as your eyes expose itself to light. This might be a momentary deal or more than that.
5. Nausea And Vomiting:
Another symptom to it might be a constant nagging nauseating feeling.
6. Blurred Vision:
This is one of the most common symptoms of glaucoma. You will see thing differently once you’re suffering from this diseases. It might be in your blood and this might also lead to severe eye power issues. It is better that you go get yourself checked at a doctor’s clinic. One can easily face glaucoma caused vision issues if they already have an eye power and are already using spectacles. In many cases, it was seen that people who neglected this particular symptom who went on the edge and experienced harmful eye problems causing temporary vision loss. The rainbow colored circles around bright lights is also a well-known symptom of glaucoma which is associated with blurred vision.
There were cases, where blurred vision was responsible for some accidents. One cannot just run from this symptom. It is really common for people suffering from glaucoma.
7. Head And Eye Pain:
Along with blurred eyes, there is another issue with the eyes which is the eye pain. The pain in the eye contours and the pain one experiences while focusing on anything is often combined a headaches kind of feeling. This pain is the head and the eyes are one of the prime symptoms of glaucoma. Along with many vision issues, one can also experience tremendous pain in the white portion of the eyes. Be cautious at all times and be on guard. It is time that you go visit a doctor.
These head and eyes pains don’t go away easily and you will have to adopt some proper measures to relieve yourself from this pain. The headaches are really server and can make you extremely sick People wit eye problems know the struggle of pains behind the eyes and the headaches.
8. Sight Loss:
This is yet another symptom of glaucoma associated with the eyes. Sudden sight loss is one of the most common symptoms of glaucoma. Among all the glaucoma symptoms, this one happens the most and people are really fed up with this. Most of the people experience sight loss issues which can be really harmful. Suppose if you’re driving and suddenly you face sight loss problems, the scenario will be totally brutal.
9. Spots:
Seeing sports in front of objects that are not there is one of the most common symptoms of glaucoma. People with eye issues are familiar with this problem. If not glaucoma, they have experienced this problem if they have a high eye power. Suppose, you’re seeing a movie and suddenly a spot or a dot comes up but it actually doesn’t exist. This might be an indication that you’re suffering from glaucoma. It is time that you go see a professional eye practitioner who will be providing you with sufficient eye case tips and provide you with medicines and therapies for treating glaucoma.
Above were some of the best symptoms and causes for glaucoma. These are the most common ones and one who has glaucoma issues will definitely find them true and relevant. There might be some other symptoms as well but the above-discussed ones are the most familiar ones.
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