A Russian expert explains the symptoms and causes of an eye disease that many may not know about

According to her, the disease develops without the sufferer noticing, and most of them do not even know that they need treatment.

“In glaucoma, pressure increases inside the eye, causing changes in the retina, which contains the visual receptors, which in turn damages the optic nerve through which the image reaches the brain, and vision becomes less sharp and can develop into blindness. These changes usually occur in both eyes,” she says.

The specialist warns that glaucoma affects young children, including children under three years of age, and adults alike. There are even congenital cases that develop either due to prematurity (early birth) or due to a deformity in the development of the eyes of the fetus. This is due to infectious diseases, such as rubella, measles, toxoplasmosis, and others that a woman contracts during pregnancy, or due to poisoning by heavy metals and ionizing radiation such as that emitted by X-ray machines.

“Glaucoma often starts spontaneously, as a result of fluid not being removed from inside the eye, as its accumulation leads to high pressure inside the eyes, but the cause of this condition has not yet been determined. Other factors include congenital eye defects, myopia, genetic predisposition, age and gender, as women are more susceptible to glaucoma,” she says.

According to her, glaucoma can be caused by an injury, eye inflammation or a tumor inside the eye. Also, against the background of some chronic diseases such as diabetes, high blood pressure, endocrine diseases and bronchial asthma, the disease develops rapidly.

“The typical first symptoms of glaucoma are black spots on the periphery of vision: a person looking straight ahead cannot distinguish objects that are close to them with their peripheral vision. These spots appear gradually and do not cause any discomfort at first, but they expand and spread to the central vision and the person feels as if they are looking through a tube that is getting narrower and narrower. However, the progression of the disease can be stopped with treatment, otherwise the person will go blind,” she says.

According to her, the disease cannot be completely cured because the nerve cells responsible for clear vision have died and cannot be restored, but the progression of the disease can be stopped using special drops and medications to strengthen the optic nerve and retina and improve blood circulation. Lasers or surgery can also be used in certain cases.

To prevent glaucoma, the doctor recommends measuring the pressure level inside the eyes every six months. Also, any vision problem, such as blurred vision, the appearance of black spots, etc., should not be ignored, and a specialist doctor should be consulted to determine the cause. This is an opportunity to detect glaucoma early and stop the progression of the disease.

Source: Izvestia newspaper