What is Glaucoma?
Glaucoma is a progressive eye condition where there is irreversible damage to the optic nerve. The optic nerve is located in the back of the eye and is also known as the cranial nerve. It's role is to transfer visual information from the retina to the brain.
Glaucoma develops when the intraocular pressure in the eye becomes abnormally high, damaging the optic nerve. The shape of the eye is maintained by intraocular pressure. If the pressure becomes too high, the fibres in the optic nerve are at risk of damage. No noticeable symptoms are presented in the early stages of glaucoma. Left untreated, it causes varying degrees of vision problems that can eventually lead to total blindness. It is one of the causes of blindness among the elderly, and early detection is vital to slow down or prevent vision loss.
Eye exam
Several eye exam tests may be carried out to measure eye pressure and corneal thickness, optic nerve damage and vision loss.
