Definition:
Glaucoma is a group of diseases of the optic nerve involving loss of retinal ganglion cells in a characteristic pattern of optic neuropathy. Although intraocular pressure has a significant risk factor for developing glaucoma, there is no set threshold for intraocular pressure that causes glaucoma.
Diagnosis:
Screening for glaucoma usually performed as part of a standard eye examination performed by ophthalmologists and optometrists. If there is any suspicion of damage to the optic nerve, a formal visual field test should be performing. Scanning laser ophthalmoscopy may also be performed.
Treatment:
Vascular flow and neurodegenerative theories of glaucomatous optic neuropathy have prompted studies on various therapeutic interventions including nutritional compounds some of which may regard by clinicians as safe for use now, others are on trial.
Symptoms and Signs:
One person may develop nerve damage at a relatively low pressure, while another person may have high eye pressure for years and yet never develop damage. Untreated glaucoma leads to permanent damage of the optic nerve and resultant visual field loss, which can progress to blindness.
Causes:
Glaucoma has been also called "sneak thief of sight" because the loss of visual field often occurs gradually over a long time and may only be recognized when it is already quite advanced. Once lost, this damaged visual field can never recover. Worldwide, it is the second leading cause of blindness. Glaucoma affects one in two hundred people aged fifty and younger, and one in ten over the age of eighty.
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