Glaucoma Testing & Management in Conifer

Open-angle glaucoma reduces your peripheral vision, usually without other symptoms. This is the most common type of glaucoma.

Acute angle-closure glaucoma, also called “narrow-angle glaucoma” or “closed-angle glaucoma,” produces sudden symptoms (eye pain, headaches, vision loss, nausea, vomiting). These symptoms are a medical emergency. Please see us immediately if you are experiencing them.

Normal-tension glaucoma, also known as “low-tension” or “low-pressure” glaucoma, is a type of glaucoma that occurs despite normal eye pressure. Its cause is not currently known.

Pigmentary glaucoma is a rare form of glaucoma. It occurs when the drainage angle in your eye becomes clogged by pigment detached from the iris. Your body generally induces an inflammatory response, blocking the drainage system.

80% of congenital glaucoma cases are diagnosed by age 1. Present since birth, congenital glaucoma is the result of some defect within the eye drainage system.

The most common treatment for glaucoma uses medicated eye drops to lower your eye pressure. They do this by reducing the amount of fluid your eyes create and increasing the amount of fluid drained.

Surgical treatments include:

• Laser trabeculoplasty: Used to treat open-angle glaucoma. It has two variants: argon laser trabeculoplasty (ALT) and selective laser trabeculoplasty (SLT). Both types of surgery lower eye pressure by helping the drainage system work better.
• Laser iridotomy: Used to treat chronic angle-closure glaucoma and acute angle-closure glaucoma. A small hole (roughly the size of a pinhead) is created in the iris using a laser. This lets aqueous fluid drain through the drainage angle.
• Peripheral iridectomy: Used to treat closed-angle glaucoma when traditional medications or laser iridotomy did not work. This procedure removes a small piece of the iris, enabling the aqueous fluid to drain via the drainage canal. This surgery is rarely performed because of the high degree of success of traditional and laser treatments.
• Trabeculectomy: Used to treat open-angle glaucoma and chronic closed-angle glaucoma. A small flap is created in the sclera, and a filtration reservoir (called a bleb) is made under the conjunctiva. Your eyelid usually covers this bleb. The bleb allows your aqueous humor to drain, where it is absorbed into blood vessels around the eye.
• Aqueous shunt surgery: Used to treat congenital glaucoma, neovascular glaucoma, and traumatic glaucoma. A drainage device, called an aqueous shunt, is placed in the conjunctiva via a small incision. This enables fluid to drain from the eye, where it is then absorbed by surrounding blood vessels. It cannot be seen in most circumstances.