Glaucoma

Glaucoma causes no symptoms until it reaches an advanced stage but is easily treatable when detected early. If you’re at risk of developing glaucoma, visit board-certified eye doctors Elias Aliprandis, MD, and Irene Rusu, MD, at Ophthalmology Associates of Bay Ridge in the Bay Ridge and Sheepshead Bay neighborhoods of Brooklyn, New York. They perform comprehensive diagnostics and offer the most advanced treatments to save your sight. Call the office to schedule a glaucoma screening or book an appointment online today.

What is glaucoma?

Glaucoma is an eye disease that causes sight loss if untreated. It develops when the pressure inside your eye is too high. Eye pressure is a delicate balance between your eye forming new fluid and draining old fluid. If fluid drainage doesn’t happen properly, it causes increased eye pressure, damaging the optic nerve.

The optic nerve sends information about your vision from your eye to your brain for processing. Damage to the nerve from glaucoma causes gradual loss of sight, beginning with peripheral (side) vision, so you may not realize how it’s affecting you unless you have an eye exam.

How does my eye doctor diagnose glaucoma?

Your Ophthalmology Associates of Bay Ridge doctor checks your eye pressure to diagnose glaucoma. They place a numbing drop in your eye and gently touch it with an instrument to record the pressure.

They may use gonioscopy to evaluate the area where fluid drainage occurs. The drainage mechanism is open if you have open-angle glaucoma (the most common form). With narrow-angle glaucoma, the drainage mechanism becomes blocked.

Your eye doctor evaluates your optic nerve, checking for the “cupped” appearance glaucoma causes. They also perform a visual field test, looking for signs of peripheral vision loss.

The Ophthalmology Associates of Bay Ridge eye doctors use the latest equipment to diagnose glaucoma, including an optical coherence tomography (OCT) nerve fiber layer analyzer and Humphrey visual field testing.

What treatments are available for glaucoma?

Glaucoma treatments lower eye pressure to prevent further damage. Eye drops used once or twice daily are a straightforward and effective glaucoma treatment. Your Ophthalmology Associates of Bay Ridge eye doctor selects the combination of drops right for you.

A safe long-term glaucoma treatment called selective laser trabeculoplasty (SLT) uses a cold laser (light beam) to open the eye’s drainage area so more fluid flows out. If you have narrow-angle glaucoma, you undergo a different laser procedure (peripheral iridotomy) to prevent angle closure glaucoma. Laser treatments are in-office procedures lasting about 10 minutes.

Patients with very advanced glaucoma require surgery. The most common is trabeculectomy, which creates a new path for fluid to leave the eye. You can also have combined glaucoma and cataract surgery.

Call Ophthalmology Associates of Bay Ridge to arrange a glaucoma screening or book an appointment online today.

Learn more about Glaucoma Eye Care and Screening