Glaucoma: silent disease can be treated with eye drops or surgery

According to the World Health Organization, 2,4 million new cases of glaucoma are registered annually, which totals 60 million people worldwide. In Brazil, according to the Brazilian Society of Glaucoma, the disease affects 2% of Brazilians over the age of 40, resulting in about one million people.

Glaucoma is an increase in intraocular pressure of the eyes, causing damage to the optic nerve, that is, causing a blockage of the fluid inside the eye, called the aqueous humor. Elevated intraocular pressure can destroy the cells of the optic nerve, generating blind spots that form in the visual field. These may be peripheral, but in later stages they reach central vision. After visual loss, the problem becomes irreversible, since the cells of the optic nerve are dead, and nothing can replace them so far.

Because it is silent, the person has difficulty feeling the symptoms of glaucoma. And when the person discovers it, often it is advanced, which generates difficulty to recover the peripheral vision, that can lead to the blindness. There are situations that may put certain individuals at greater risk of developing it, such as:

• Being over 45
• Family history of glaucoma
• Abnormally high intraocular pressure
• Descendants of Africans or Asians are older
• Diabetes
• Myopia
• Prolonged use of corticosteroids
• Prior eye injury

The initial treatment indicated is the use of eye drops, which cause a decrease in intraocular pressure. If you do not achieve a favorable outcome, there is a laser to improve the flow of the aqueous humor and, in the last case, the indication for surgery.

The complications are serious, because the vision loss is slow and initially only attacks the peripheral vision. One can not perceive that one's visual capacity is being reduced. Until the wearer notices a vision problem, a loss of 40% to 50% of the nerve fibers (neurons), which make up the optic nerve, may already have occurred. It is important to note that the damage caused by glaucoma is irreversible. Therefore, the importance of early diagnosis.

In order to identify the disease as soon as possible and start treatment to prevent it from progressing and causing even more damage, it is essential to measure the intraocular pressure after 40 years of age, in addition to the evaluation of the fundus of the eye by the specialist. Remembering that this disease does not cure itself.

The initial treatment indicated is the use of eye drops, which cause a decrease in intraocular pressure. If you do not achieve a favorable result, there is a laser to improve the flow of the aqueous humor and, in the last case, the indication of surgery.

Today, there are three types of surgery:

Laser trabeculoplasty

In laser trabeculoplasty a combination of laser frequencies is used, which allows treatment with low energy. This procedure treats specific damaged cells, leaving other portions intact. This method can be repeated to achieve the result.

Laser Iridectomy

The other surgery that may be prescribed is laser iridectomy, intended for treatment and prevention of closed angle. A small peripheral opening is created in the iris, so that the aqueous humor passes freely from the posterior chamber to the anterior chamber of the eye.

Trabeculectomy

Finally, traditional trabeculectomy is indicated to control glaucoma in cases where clinical treatment has no effect and when the complementary exams such as Campimetria, retinal mapping and gonioscopy show that the clinical picture continues to worsen. The procedure consists of making a liquid drainage fistula of the aqueous humor of the anterior chamber of the eye.Each of these procedures is indicated depending on the type of glaucoma, the stage the patient is in, and other factors. Therefore, the visit to the ophthalmologist is paramount for prevention and detection of the initial stage of any disease!

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