Ask a Health Professional (715) 732-2101 3003 Cleveland Avenue Marinette, W Andrew Congdon, o.D. INSIGHT Doctor of Optometr VISION CENTER Question: What is Glaucoma? People fen will check your pressure at con fus e each exam to monitor for Gl a u c o m a changes in your eye pressure with Cataracts. Glaucoma not Cataracts are a natural aging generally make your vision of the lens in the eye that blurry, but it will steal your causes blurry vision that side vision. People with equires surgery to repair. Glaucoma don't show any Glaucoma is a much more symptoms in the early stages serious condition that can because the side vision that permanently damage your gets stolen is by your nose vision, even blind you. What in each eye. Since our visual is Glaucoma and what fields overlap between each can you do to prevent it? eye, you can have pretty Glaucoma affects your eyes severe damage to one eye in a very similar way to blood and the other will cover f pressure. The eye naturally it. Your eye doctor will use creates its own fluid, and has a machine called a Visual its own drainage completely Field Analyzer, to map out inside the eye. This is not the your visual field. Glaucoma same as tears your eye makes. can be easily detected If the eye makes too much with this instrument fluid, or doesn't drain t fast Not al people with enough, the pressure will rise Glaucoma have high eye inside the eye. Much like your pressure. Just because it is blood pressure, you generally normal for most people, that cannot feel this happening. doesn't mean it is normal When the pressure is higher for everyone. The best way in the eye it can damage the to determine if you are at different structures in the risk for glaucoma is to get eye. The most important a comprehensive eye exam is the optic nerve. You can Your eye doctor will check think of the optic nerve as your pressure, and actually the cable that brings all the be able to look right at information to the brain your from the eye. If you have a there bad cable, you will have a Remember, you cannot bad signal. High pressure in fee Glaucoma happenin the eye prevents blood and to you, and it can happen a nutrients from getting into any age. Make sure to make the optic nerve, which makes regular eye exams, even if you it sick. Slowly, over many do not need glasses, to check years, the optic nerve wil your ocular health. start to die, and your vision can suffer. Your eye doctor optic nerve to see if possible damage