January 2022 Newsletter

Have a Happy & Healthy New Year

Glaucoma Does Discriminate: Here’s What You Need To Know To Protect Yourself

Glaucoma is one of the leading causes of vision loss, affecting about 3 million people in the United States. But this potentially blinding eye disease does not affect all people equally. During Glaucoma Awareness Month in January, The Eye Centers of Northwest Ohio and the American Academy of Ophthalmology is urging people to be screened, especially if you are at increased risk of glaucoma.

Who is at risk?

African Americans are 6 to 8 times more likely to get glaucoma than white Americans. Blindness from glaucoma is 6 to 8 times more common in African Americans than white Americans.
People with diabetes are 2 times more likely to get glaucoma than people without diabetes.
Hispanic Americans face an increased risk comparable to African Americans, but the disease may also progress faster as they age, compared with other ethnic groups.
Asians are at an increased risk for the less common types of glaucoma: angle-closure glaucoma and normal-tension glaucoma.
Also at risk are people over age 40, those who are severely nearsighted, and those who have a family history of glaucoma.

What Is Glaucoma?

Glaucoma damages the optic nerve, which transmits visual information from the retina to the brain. Typically, the disease progresses slowly, gradually destroying peripheral vision. Because people are unaware of early peripheral vision loss, a patient can lose most of it before they even know they have glaucoma.

Here’s The Good News: Glaucoma Can Be Treated Successfully, If It’s Caught Early!

Appropriate treatment for glaucoma depends on the specific type and severity of the disease. Medicated eye drops or laser treatments are the most common initial approach. These techniques work by lowering eye pressure to reduce the amount of fluid in the eye, and by increasing fluid outflow from the eye.

Glaucoma Surgery

Laser Trabeculoplasty

Glaucoma is a term for a group of chronic medical eye conditions where there is continued, progressive damage to the optic nerve (the connection between the eye and the brain). Uncontrolled glaucoma ultimately leads to permanent vision loss. Laser trabeculoplasty is a type of laser eye surgery intended to help lower intraocular pressure in patients with glaucoma. Many patients, regardless of type and severity of glaucoma, may be great candidates for glaucoma laser surgery. The procedure is especially ideal for patients in who eye drop administration is difficult, such as patients with severe arthritis or patients with difficulty in self-administration of eye drops. The procedure consists of stimulating the “drain network” of the eye to work better; properly performed, it has a very low complication rate. Perhaps the most attractive feature is that it may help with 24-hour eye pressure control that is independent of medication administration. It is not a permanent substitute for glaucoma treatment, but it may be a very useful adjuvant to maximizing your active lifestyle.

Micro-Invasive Glaucoma Surgery (MIGS)

The latest advances in the surgical treatment of mild- to moderate- open angle glaucoma are being practiced here at the Eye Centers of Northwest Ohio. Minimally invasive glaucoma surgery involves the implantation of a tiny titanium implant into the ‘drain’ of the eye to help facilitate the outflow of aqueous humor, the fluid made and drained by our eyes. This implant is the Glaukos iStent, and is the smallest implant utilized in human medicine to date. This procedure is done in conjunction with the cataract surgery to help lessen the burden and potential need for glaucoma medication to allow for more independence after eye surgery. Speak with any of our eye care professionals to see if you are an ideal candidate for this medically-covered iStent implantation.