Our mission as ophthalmologists is to make the population aware of how important it is to go to the ophthalmologist for an eye exam and thus prevent or treat, one of the chronic eye diseases that most often cause blindness from the age of sixty. We are talking about glaucoma.
This disease causes irreversible loss of vision and is due to an involvement of the optic nerve fibers, produced among other causes, by the increase in intraocular pressure. When the production of an intraocular fluid called “aqueous humor” increases, or there is difficulty for the eye to eliminate it through the iridocoroneal angle, the eye pressure in the eye increases. In addition to this and, due to a mechanical process among other factors, an involvement of the optic nerve fibers can occur, with “apoptosis” or neuronal death.
If glaucoma is not treated, the consequence is a decrease in the amplitude over the visual field. Normally the symptoms begin with a loss of peripheral vision, and in advanced glaucoma, circumferential involvement occurs until central vision, It is the phase in which the patient sees only by the 10 central degrees, and even, you can reach total blindness in cases not treated or that do not respond to treatment.
As explained above, it is vital to carry out an early screening among patients who are over forty years old, and especially those who have a family history having this disease, since the hereditary component of the disease is demonstrated.
Diagnosing this pathology at an early stage, allows ophthalmologists to help patients with this disease. Treatment to reduce eye pressure with different drugs administered as eye drops or eye drops, and very important, perform different tests every several months and check if progress or stabilization occurs in the progression of the disease.
With all these data, other measures such as laser treatment or surgery (either microimplants to gain time to this process, or more traditional surgeries, which are the last phase of treatment) can also be considered.
We live in a society that has longer life expectancy, and this leads to patients, since they stay longer with a useful vision that will allow them to remain active and not dependent. Today, the advancement of technology, and many activities considered usual, require adequate visual quality.
And finally, just remind you that our work as health professionals is provide a good information…….because prevention is also treatment.
Recent Comments