Glaucoma

Serving the Greater Los Angeles Area

Coming from: Beverly Hills, Santa Monica, Pasadena, Orange County, Ventura County

Glaucoma

Glaucoma is a disease of the optic nerve — the part of the eye that carries the images we see to the brain. The optic nerve is made up of many nerve fibers, like an electric cable containing numerous wires. When damage to the optic nerve fibers occurs, blind spots develop. These blind spots usually go undetected until the optic nerve is significantly damaged. If the entire nerve is destroyed, blindness results.

Early detection and treatment are the keys to preventing optic nerve damage and blindness from glaucoma.

Glaucoma is a leading cause of blindness in the United States, but loss of sight from glaucoma can often be prevented with early treatment. Regular medical eye exams may help prevent unnecessary vision loss.

Your glaucoma evaluation is painless and can include:

• Measurement of your intraocular pressure (tonometry)
• Inspection of the drainage angle of your eye (gonioscopy);
• evaluation whether or not there is any optic nerve damage (ophthalmoscopy);
• testing of the peripheral vision of each eye (visual field testing, or perimetry).
• Computerized imaging of your optic nerve

These tests may need to be repeated on a regular basis to monitor any changes in your condition and help guide your treatment regimen.

Treatment for glaucoma is usually aimed at lowering the eye pressure. The desired target eye pressure range varies from patient to patient. The two most common methods of lowering the eye pressure are (1) topical (eyedrop) medications and (2) laser treatment. The eyedrops are generally well tolerated with a minimum of significant side effects. While the drops are quite effective at lowering the intraocular pressure, some patients find them inconvenient, difficult to use, and expensive. Fortunately, a procedure called Selective Laser Trabeculoplasty (SLT) is also effective at lowering intraocular pressure. The SLT procedure is essentially painless, takes two to three minutes to perform, and requires no post-procedural restrictions.

For some patients, neither the eyedrop medications nor the SLT procedure alone can provide adequate pressure control. These treatments can be used in combination, but, at times, conventional surgery in the operating room may be necessary for Glaucoma.