Can You Go Blind From Glaucoma?

Glaucoma is a set of eye disorders that harm the optic nerve, which is responsible for communication between the eyes and the brain. When this is neglected, it can lead to permanent vision loss or even blindness. It is caused by excess pressure in the eye and is common in patients over the age of 60. Some common symptoms include eye pain, headaches, blurry vision, and nausea. They can be diagnosed during a routine eye exam at Baton Rouge Eye Physicians. While there is no cure for glaucoma, we do offer effective glaucoma treatment in Baton Rouge, LA. It can be managed with early diagnosis and treatment.

How do you get glaucoma?

The fluid inside the eye flows out of the eye through a mesh-like channel. When this channel gets blocked, or the eye is producing too much fluid, this liquid builds up. Sometimes, glaucoma can be caused by an injury to the eye, a severe eye infection, an inflammatory condition, or even a blocked blood vessel. Usually, it affects both eyes but is worse in one eye. Our eye specialists in Baton Rouge, LA can evaluate your eyes during an eye exam to determine if you’re suffering from the effects of glaucoma.

Types of glaucoma

There are two main kinds of glaucoma:

Open-angle glaucoma: This is the most common glaucoma type and results when the structure of the eye is intact, but fluid doesn’t flow as it should. Most people with this glaucoma type don't have symptoms. If they do, it’s usually when they’re late in the disease.
Angle-closure glaucoma: This occurs when the eye doesn’t drain as it should because the drain space is too narrow, causing a buildup in the eye. It is also connected to cataracts and farsightedness.

This makes it that much more important to schedule regular eye exams at Baton Rouge Eye Physicians to detect problems with your eyes early on before side effects occur.

Diagnosing and treating glaucoma

Our eye specialists diagnose glaucoma during a comprehensive eye exam. We measure the pressure inside the eye, assess the cornea’s thickness, look at the optic nerve, and check each patient’s peripheral vision. If glaucoma is detected, we offer different treatments that can successfully manage the disease. All of these techniques focus on easing pressure inside the eye, which helps prevent further damage to the optic nerve. Mild cases can be managed with daily eye drops, while more advanced stages are generally treated with minimally invasive glaucoma surgery (MIGS), laser surgeries, or traditional glaucoma surgery.

What happens if glaucoma is left untreated?

Many people have glaucoma and don’t know it. This is because a lot of the time, it causes someone no pain. Ultimately, only a trained eye doctor can tell if you have this progressive disease. When you don’t have regular eye exams, and it goes untreated, it can worsen, and the increased pressure in the eye can damage the optic nerve. This damage will impair your vision. Ultimately, glaucoma blindness cannot be reversed. Vision loss will begin at the edges of the eye first. Eventually, the central vision will become blurry, and then a patient will become blind.

Manage your glaucoma with regular eye exams

At Baton Rouge Eye Physicians, we have helped many men and women manage their glaucoma effectively. Early detection and intervention are most important when it comes to preserving your vision and slowing the progression of glaucoma. When you have noticed a change in your vision, or have a family history of glaucoma, schedule an appointment with our eye specialists in Baton Rouge, LA, today.