Glaucoma week has been celebrated since Sunday, a disease that is the leading cause of irreversible blindness and already affects more than 70 million people worldwide. But what is glaucoma? How can it be prevented?… expert Dr. Lillo Sopena clarifies these doubts for us.
What is glaucoma?
Glaucoma is an eye disease characterized by a pathological increase in intraocular pressure due to a lack of drainage of the aqueous humor and has as a final common condition an optic neuropathy characterized by the progressive loss of the nerve fibers of the optic nerve and changes in its appearance. There are several types of glaucoma, in most of them the drainage system of the eye is clogged and the intraocular fluid cannot drain normally. As this fluid accumulates, it increases the pressure in the eye and damages the optic nerve, leading to irreversible loss of vision.
Each type of glaucoma has a different origin and evolution, but most cases correspond to the so-called simple chronic glaucoma. Most of those affected do not show any symptoms in the early stages of the disease; the most obvious signs appear when defects in the visual field, blurred vision, eye pain, headache, perception of halos around the eyes and progressive loss of vision appear.
According to Dr. Juan Lillo Sopena, member of Top Doctors, “the big problem with glaucoma is that in most cases, the patient does not perceive any change in his vision until very advanced stages of the disease. It usually begins with a loss of field of vision, a circumstance that is very difficult for the patient to perceive, and finally affects central vision”. Furthermore, the glaucoma specialist warns that “if the disease is not adequately treated, a loss of visual field will occur, which can be disabling and will eventually result in a loss of total vision”.
Glaucoma prevention, vital
Prevention is the best solution for dealing with glaucoma, which is why Dr. Lillo Sopena recommends check-ups especially for those people most prone to developing glaucoma, who are people with high eye pressure, over 40 years of age, relatives of people who have suffered from glaucoma or people of African descent.
Without proper treatment, glaucoma can lead to blindness, but with early detection and proper treatment, vision can be preserved. Currently, more than 70 million people worldwide suffer from glaucoma, 10% of whom are blind.
“The key to avoiding the most advanced and irreversible stages of glaucoma is early detection,” according to Dr. Lillo Sopena, who recommends:
– Performing an annual ophthalmologic checkup, starting at age 40, and earlier if there is a family history of glaucoma.
– Routine examinations in children and adolescents.
– Genetic test for early detection
Glaucoma treatment
Currently, there are different therapies to treat glaucoma that help alleviate its progression. “We must bear in mind that glaucoma treatment only manages to stop the symptoms of the disease, but we will never achieve a total improvement of the disease,” Dr. Lillo Sopena explains.
Depending on the stage of the disease, the recommended treatment will vary. Although eye pressure is only one of the causes of glaucoma, reducing this pressure is the most commonly used treatment based on eye drops. For more acute cases, laser treatment may also be useful. If, despite all this, glaucoma continues to progress, Dr. Lillo Sopena advises “surgical treatment. In recent years new surgical techniques have appeared that have helped to control this disease more safely and effectively. Most of them aim to create new pathways to drain the aqueous humor”.