Glaucoma Essay, Research Paper

Glaucoma

The most common eye disease of the eyelid is a sty, which is an infection of the eyelashes. Several congenital defects of the eyelids occur, including coloboma, or cleft eyelid, and ptosis, a drooping of the upper lid. (Eye 4) Defects to the eye are in inner surface of the eyelid to the eyeball, which usually burns. The eyelids are skin diseases such as eczema and acne and malignant tumors. The mucous membranes covering the inside of the eyelids and the outside of the eyeball, are other eye diseases. Without treatment, glaucoma can cause blindness.

Glaucoma can also be treated by eye drops, which is the most common treatment, but must be used regularly. Another treatment is the laser, and the laser is used when the eye drops do not stop deterioration after laser. In case eye drops will need to be continued after laser. And the last treatment is surgery, and surgery is only done if the eye drops and laser fail. Treatment can always save the remaining eye vision but it does not improve eye sight. Surgery is done by making a small hole in the eye to drain fluid, and alleviate the pressure. Doctors work by either aiding fluid drainage or reducing the fluid in the eye. There is a 75 percent to 85 percent success rate.

Although anyone can get glaucoma, some people have a higher risk of it. People who are at risk of glaucoma may have a family history of glaucoma, or may have diabetes or those who may take steroids. An eye injury may cause glaucoma, which your blood pressure may rise. People in these groups should have there first eye exam no later than the age of 35.

There are four major types of glaucoma, and they are open angle or chromic glaucoma, closed angle or acute glaucoma, congenital glaucoma, and secondary glaucoma. Angle closure is associated with dilation and may provoke the drops that dilate the eye. Attacks can develop without any warning symptoms and occur in the evening when lights are dim and the pupils are dilated (Glaucoma 2). In acute glaucoma, the pressure inside the eye rises suddenly and immediate medical treatment is necessary to preserve vision (Glaucoma 1). Unless pressure within the eyeball is lowered within 24 hours, permanent damage can be done.

Chronic glaucoma has no early warning signs and the loss of vision. It may go until an amount of damage and vision loss has occurred. Chronic simple glaucoma within the eye rises vision loss progresses over a period of years.

Secondary glaucoma is caused by other diseased including some eye disease and systemic disease, and by any steroids. The choroid, or middle coat of the eyeball, contains most of the blood vessels of the eye, which often sites the secondary infections from toxic conditions and bacterial infections such as tuberculosis and syphilis (Eye 4). Cancer may develop in the choroidal tissue or be carried to the eye from somewhere else in the body. This reduces the blood supple to the nerves which causes the to die.

Congenital glaucoma, presented at birth, is the result of defective development of the structures of the eye (Glaucoma 2). Surgery is required for correction. Congenital glaucoma is hereditary.

Not everyone who has glaucoma has an elevated pressure, but even people with a normal pressure can still develop glaucoma. Ten to 21 is considered normal, while people with pressures as high as 29 never see signs of the disease. Approximately

one-eighth of all blindness in the U.S. is due to glaucoma (Glaucoma 1).