Your eye is one of the most special senses that enables you to appreciate everything around you. As you age, you are more likely to suffer from eye problems, including glaucoma. Glaucoma is characterized by partial blindness, which, if left untreated, might result in blindness.
You can therefore seek New Smyrna Beach glaucoma therapies to help improve your vision and prevent blindness. You should consult an ophthalmologist immediately after experiencing problems focusing on certain objects. Below are some of the effective ways of treating glaucoma.
Eyedrops
The first line of treatment for glaucoma is usually eye drops. You should know that various types of eyedrops can be used, but all of them aim to reduce the pressure in your eyes. Your care provider may require you to use them one or four times daily.
You should ensure you use the eye drops as directed by your care provider, even if you are not experiencing any vision problems. You can use several types of eyedrops before you find the best one for your problem. In other cases, your care provider may require you to use more than two simultaneously.
Laser therapy
Your care provider may recommend laser treatment when different eye drops are not effective. Laser therapy involves using high-energy beams of light to prevent fluid accumulation in the eyes. There are various types of laser therapy that your care provider may recommend.
For instance, your care provider may require you to undergo laser trabeculoplasty to help open the drainage tubes in your eyes, thus easing pressure. In other cases, you might undergo cyclo-diode laser therapy to destroy some eye tissue that produces aqueous humor. The type of laser therapy recommended depends on the glaucoma you suffer from.
Conventional surgery
If the above therapies fail to lower your intraocular pressure, your care provider may recommend conventional surgery. Your care provider may also refer to conventional surgery as filtering surgery. The surgery focuses on lowering intraocular pressure by creating other pathways through which the aqueous humor drains.
The surgeon starts by lifting the conjunctiva or transparent membranes found on the surface of your eye to grant access to the inner parts of your eyes. The transparent membranes serve as a cover for the new draining opening in your eye.
Goniotomy
It is a procedure commonly performed on infants diagnosed with congenital glaucoma. Your surgeon usually inserts a small blade through the cornea and cuts the trabecular meshwork. Doing so allows the fluid to flow out of your eye, thus reducing the pressure in your eye.
Trabeculectomy can also be performed on infants with congenital glaucoma. The procedure involves your care provider making a tiny incision in the outer part of your eye to break through your trabecular meshwork. The fluid in your eye gets drained, thus maintaining the eye pressure within normal range.
The current technology enables your care provider to detect glaucoma early before it results in blindness. Therefore, if you begin experiencing eye concerns, ensure you reach out to your care provider for early diagnosis and treatment. Your care provider usually designs a personalized treatment plan for you, depending on your glaucoma type.
You can prevent complications of glaucoma, such as blindness, by scheduling a consultation at PRECISION EYE INSTITUTE today. Your treatment session begins with an evaluation to help determine the cause of your glaucoma. It would help if you did not wait until you can no longer seek because blindness is irreversible.