Glaucoma : Causes, Symptoms and Treatments in Addis Ababa

Looking for Glaucoma treatment in Addis Ababa for problems of seeing things near you?  At Addis Ababa eye clinic, we offer professional, safe and effective Glaucoma treatments trailed for improving your eyesight.

Related : Eye clinic in Ethiopia

Introduction

Eye disease is impairment of health or a condition of abnormal functioning of the organ of sight.

One of that causes of eye disses is Glaucoma, it is a group of eye diseases that can cause vision loss and blindness by damaging a nerve in the back of your eye called the optic nerve. The symptoms can start so slowly that you may not notice them. The only way to find out if you have glaucoma is to get a comprehensive dilated eye exam.

Visit Addis Ababa Eye Clinic to get treated quickly if you get any symptoms of Glaucoma.

What is Glaucoma?

Glaucoma is a disease that damages your eye’s optic nerve. It usually happens when fluid builds up in the front part of your eye. That extra fluid increases the pressure in your eye, damaging the optic nerve. Glaucoma is a leading cause of blindness for people over 60 years old. But blindness from glaucoma can often be prevented with early treatment.

What are the symptoms of Glaucoma?

Signs of open-angle glaucoma tend to come on subtlety and gradually. That makes them easy to miss.

These can be some of the symptoms of glaucoma

• Hazy or Low vision, blurred vision, narrowed vision (tunnel vision) or blind spots.

• Hazy or blurred vision: Distorted or blurry vision accompanied by other symptoms
• Eye pain: Severe pain around your eyes & head
• Eye redness: Red eyes caused by increased eye pressure
• Colored halos around lights: Colored bright circles forming around light sources
• Nausea or vomiting: Nausea or vomiting alongside eye pain
• Headaches

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Many people with open-angle glaucoma have no noticeable symptoms early on, which makes it incredibly important to have routine eye exams to detect this disease in its earlier stages. Because glaucoma damage is irreversible, early detection and treatment is crucial to prevent blindness.

Causes of Glaucoma

Most cases are caused by a build-up of pressure in the eye when fluid is unable to drain properly. This increase in pressure then damages the nerve that connects the eye to the brain (optic nerve). It’s often unclear why this happens, although certain things can increase the risk, including:

• your age – glaucoma becomes more common as you get older
• your ethnicity – people of African, Caribbean or Asian origin are at a higher risk
• your family history – you’re more likely to develop glaucoma if you have a parent or sibling with the condition
• other medical conditions – such as short-sightedness, long-sightedness and diabetes

It’s not clear whether you can do anything to prevent glaucoma, but having regular eye tests should pick it up as early as possible.

Glaucoma treatment options at Addis Ababa Eye Clinic

Eyedrops

Prescription eye drop medicines include:

• Prostaglandins
• Beta blockers
• Alpha-adrenergic agonists. 
• Carbonic anhydrase inhibitors.
• Rho kinase inhibitor. 
• Miotic or cholinergic agents. 

Oral medications

Eye drops alone may not bring your eye pressure down to the desired level. So your eye doctor may also prescribe oral medicine. This medicine is usually a carbonic anhydrase inhibitor. Possible side effects include frequent urination, tingling in the fingers and toes, depression, stomach upset, and kidney stones.

Surgery and other therapies

Other treatment options include laser therapy and surgery. The following techniques may help to drain fluid within the eye and lower eye pressure:

• Laser therapy.
• Filtering surgery. 
• Drainage tubes.
• Minimally invasive glaucoma surgery (MIGS).
• Treating acute angle-closure glaucoma

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Acute angle-closure glaucoma is a medical emergency. If you’re diagnosed with this condition, you’ll need urgent treatment to reduce the pressure in your eye. This generally will require treatment with medicine and laser or surgical procedures.

You may have a procedure called a laser peripheral iridotomy. The doctor creates a small hole in your iris using a laser. This allows fluid to flow through the iris. This helps to open the drainage angle of the eye and relieves eye pressure.

Conclusion

Glaucoma is a group of eye diseases that can cause vision loss and blindness by damaging a nerve in the back of your eye called the optic nerve. . It usually happens when fluid builds up in the front part of your eye. That extra fluid increases the pressure in your eye, damaging the optic nerve. Glaucoma is a leading cause of blindness for people over 60 years old. Note that it is important to visit an eye specialist if you have an eye pain, itching, or discomfort as it could be a symptoms of a serious condition. It is also medically advisable to visit the eye clinic for a cheek up to preserve and also look out for serious issues earlier before they get worse as they can often be prevented with early treatment.