Glaucoma is a group of conditions caused by abnormally high eye pressure, also known as intraocular pressure or IOP. Elevated IOP is a major risk factor for vision loss as it is associated with a higher risk of irreversible damage to your optic nerve, the nerve at the back of your eye that sends signals to your brain. This type of damage is linked to open-angle glaucoma, the most common form of glaucoma.
Once you notice signs of open-angle glaucoma (like permanent peripheral vision loss1) you may already have damage in your eye. This delay in symptoms explains why half of all people with glaucoma don’t even know they have it until their vision is significantly changed.
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How do you identify glaucoma sooner?
The earlier you can identify the high eye pressure associated with glaucoma, the sooner you can receive treatment. (Treatment can help lower your eye pressure.) There are no at-home tests—only an eye doctor can check your eye pressure. The key is going in for your routine eye exams starting around your 40th birthday (or sooner if you have a higher risk for glaucoma, such as when it runs in your family or if you have African American ancestry, are over age 60, or have diabetes). In those exams, your doctor will dilate your pupil and look at the back of your eye to see if your optic nerve shows any damage.
You got a glaucoma diagnosis. What’s next?
Your ophthalmologist will work with you to develop a treatment plan that is tailored to your needs and lifestyle. Make sure you talk to your doctor to find out specifics. Ask what kind of glaucoma you have (open-angle or another type), what stage it’s in, and what kind of follow-up you should do. (Glaucoma is chronic, after all, so you’re going to be seeing a lot of your ophthalmologist.)
