Those who have no sign of nerve damage at the back of the eye, despite raised eye pressure and open drainage angles, are referred to as having "ocular hypertension" or being "Glaucoma suspects".
Ocular hypertension means that the pressure inside your eye is higher than normal, but you have no damage to the optic nerve. You'll want to see your provider and follow suggestions about medications and regular eye exams.
Approximately 3-6 million Americans and 4-7% of people above the age of 40 years old have elevated IOP without evidence of glaucomatous optic nerve damage.
Research shows that high eye pressure increases your risk for glaucoma. Experts believe that when the pressure inside your eye gets too high, it can damage the optic nerve and cause vision loss. And studies show that lowering eye pressure can help stop vision loss from glaucoma.
In general, pressures of 20-30 mm Hg usually cause damage over several years, but pressures of 40-50 mm Hg can cause rapid visual loss and also precipitate retinovascular occlusion.
Glaucoma is a group of eye conditions that damage the optic nerve. The optic nerve sends visual information from your eye to your brain and is vital for good vision. Damage to the optic nerve is often related to high pressure in your eye. But glaucoma can happen even with normal eye pressure.
Optic neuritis occurs when swelling (inflammation) damages the optic nerve — a bundle of nerve fibers that transmits visual information from your eye to your brain. Common symptoms of optic neuritis include pain with eye movement and temporary vision loss in one eye.
An injury or trauma to the eye can also cause high eye pressure that may be temporary or long term. Make sure to tell your eye doctor about any such incidence, past or present, to help in monitoring your eye health.
The damage caused by glaucoma can't be reversed. But treatment and regular checkups can help slow or prevent vision loss, especially if you catch the disease in its early stages.
Having high pressure inside your eye can heighten your risk of developing permanent nerve damage. High eye pressure increases your risk for developing conditions such as optic neuritis and glaucoma. Schedule an appointment with an eye doctor near you to have your eye pressure measured.
Glaucoma is a serious, lifelong eye disease that can lead to vision loss if not controlled. But for most people, glaucoma does not have to lead to blindness. That is because glaucoma is controllable with modern treatment, and there are many choices to help keep glaucoma from further damaging your eyes.
Fluid buildup, eye trauma, medications, and other eye conditions are all potential causes of an increase in eye pressure. Typically, one of the keys to reducing it is treating the root cause. It's important to remember that higher-than-normal pressure doesn't guarantee severe problems.
At the end of five years it was discovered that nearly 10 percent (9.5%) of the untreated ocular hypertension patients had developed glaucoma whereas in the treated group around a half as many (4.5%) developed some evidence of glaucoma nerve damage.
Not all people with ocular hypertension will develop glaucoma. However, people with ocular hypertension have an increased risk of glaucoma. Therefore, if you have ocular hypertension, it is essential to have regular comprehensive eye examinations.
First, we know that statistically speaking, having eye pressures over 21 mmHg (millimeters of mercury) is not very common in a generally healthy population. We also know that eye pressure tends to increase as we get older since the drainage system does not function as well.
Reductions in IOP were found to increase with the duration of walking, jogging and running. IOP measured after both isometric and isokinetic exercise was found to be lower than pre-exercise IOP.
Over the course of a 24-hour period, IOP normally varies by 2 to 6 mmHg as a result of imperfect synchronization of aqueous secretion and drainage. However, practitioners recognized decades ago that, unlike normal patients, glaucoma patients could have fluctuations greater than 10 mmHg.
Normal eye pressure ranges from 12-21 mm Hg, and eye pressure of greater than 21 mm Hg is considered higher than normal. When the IOP is higher than normal but the person does not show signs of glaucoma, this is referred to as ocular hypertension. High eye pressure alone does not cause glaucoma.
Damage to the optic nerve is irreversible because the cable of nerve fibers doesn't have the capacity to regenerate, or heal itself, when damage occurs.
Ophthalmoscopy. A lighted instrument with a special lens provides your doctor with a 3D view of the inside or your eye. Careful ophthalmoscopy is essential for detecting inflammation and damage to the optic nerve.
Permanent damage to the optic nerve occurs in about 85 per cent of cases, but the damage does not always cause serious vision problems. In many cases, optic neuritis is short-lived and resolves by itself without treatment in around four to 12 weeks. The person's vision improves once the inflammation subsides.