glaucoma??? sorry not dbr and a little long...

Lees daughter

Lees daughter

Active member
Hey guys

I had my routine eye exam yesterday, and after a few test the DR proceeded to question me about my family history of glaucoma and cataract...

He said he wanted to do a few more test if I was OK with it, so I said sure..

After putting some drops in he ran some lights over my eyes and checked the pressure
He said my optic nerves are reading over a 7.8 ( normal is around 2.5)
also said my pressures were 25 and 26 (didn't say what normal was)

After he was telling me this I was dumbfounded I said "isnt glaucoma for old people" (sorry if this offends anyone>>>) he said no it can effect any age person it is just more common in older persons...

Mind you I am 30 years old 31 in July so I'm thinking great..... guess 30 WAS the point of heading down hill....

I have to go back Monday to the specialty clinic about 30 miles from here for a few more test,
Ive done some googling since getting home but
my questions to you guys are

anyone know how much of a factor stress and or high blood pressure can be on the eyes? needless to say Ive had a pretty stressful past 6 months, and the blood pressure comes in pretty high threw hereditary means... I didn't think to ask this to the DR at the time....

also wondered if anyone had heard of someone my age having issues with it, and what they did about it, the DR told me I would most likely need to start daily RX drops indefinitely... I'm not a big fan of anything going near, in, or around my eyes... Hope something can be done with out a daily drop...

Anyway thanks for any info anyone wants to pass on...

Bridget
 
Bridget,

First, I know very little about glaucoma, optic nerves, etc. Secondly, I have no formal medical education so all my jabbering is only from personal experience.

Now on to something I think I know a bit about. STRESS, yes, stress can cause all sorts of complications in our bodies and manifest itself in ways that seem totally unrelated to what we have been going through. Things like migranes, high blood pressure, ulcers, etc. are some of the most common but heart problems, cancer, etc. are also possibilities. As it relates to your problems, blood pressure might indeed be a contributing factor. When I had high BP back about 20 years ago all of a sudden my eye sight became 20/15 after wearing glasses since I was in the 6th grade. It lasted 2 years until my BP came down. My eye doctor said it couldn't happen - but it did. If my eye sight was improved by high BP could yours get worse or cause glaucoma - I don't know but I wouldn't rule it out. Get your BP under control and try to find a way to relieve some of the stress in your life. Meditation works great as does excersize. Sometimes a change in job is in order. Whatever you decide, reducing stress will make your life easier and longer.

Good Luck,
 
Brighet
I would wait until all the tests are done before you get all upset. Some doc's don't always use the most tactful way to present something so wait for the final tests. Take if from an "old fart".
wis boz
 
Bridget,

You should have called me sis, just went thru all that stuff. High bp does raise the pressures in the eyes as does smoking, pressure shoud be around 16 to 17% according to my dr. Cateracts is a clouding of the lens in the eye, this is what I had, simple surgey to correct, and can happen at any age, my dr. youngest patient was 6 months old and his oldest was 101 yrs old so don't think it just happens to old fogies. Glacoma is a buldging of the cornia do to high internal eye pressures causing loss of perifial vision, that was what they were looking at with the extra test, and can be relieved quite easily, there is a flap in the eye that they lift up and drain some of the fluid, done in the office where I went, and then they perscribed Acular Drops twice a day to keep pressure down, if let go it causes loss of perif. vison. I've got to go back in 6 wks for more glacoma test and can ask if you have more questions.
 
Thanks for all the info guys... I went in today and had another test done, they dilated my eyes and took some pictures..
I didnt get a chance to see the actual eye DR and the woman didnt feel comfortable giving me any information?....


I guess Ill find out more next Tuesday...


Bridget
 
Put your faith in the Lord and pray everything will work out OK.

Have you ever been tested for diabetes ?

Cataracts nor Glaucoma are not the end of the world and both are treatable.

My eye doc was a little concerned six months ago but by my last OD appointment the issue had resolved itself and yes I'm one of those old folks (60).

You are in my prayers,
Harry
 
Bridget,

I am an optometrist. I see glaucoma patients and glaucoma suspects in my office on a regular basis. As you may have already know, glaucoma is a disease that causes optic nerve degeneration and potentially loss of vision. There are several types of glaucoma. Glaucoma is thought to be caused by either high internal eye pressure or poor blood circulation to the optic nerve. The eye pressure does not have to be high to get glaucoma. There are many risk factors including: family history, internal eye pressure, optic nerve cup size, race, injury, history of certain eye inflammations, steroid use, and others. Because glaucoma is often a slowly progressing, painless disease, we look for risk factors and anatomy to determine if you are at high risk or low risk for glaucoma. Usually, it takes many visits to determine if someone truly has glaucoma. We often follow "glaucoma suspect" patients for years who have risk factors but show no optic nerve damage. The measurements you described, an optic nerve cup of .7 to .8 is indeed larger than average. However, it could be normal for you if it has been the same size since birth. Without previous eye exam information, we cannot be sure if the optic nerve is changing or if it is the original anatomy. The eye pressure of 25 is also higher than the average 12-21 mmHg. Some things, including a thicker than average cornea, can cause the eye pressure to be artificially high. There are tests that should be run to determine this. Other tests that should be done, are a threshold visual field test to detect any reduced sensitivity to the central or peripheral vision and an optic nerve scan which determines if the optic nerve fiber layer is thinner than average and can indicate loss of nerve fibers. All of this information combined determines if and when you should be treated for glaucoma.

Regarding blood pressure, there have been a variety of studies with a variety of results. There is no conclusive proof that high blood pressure causes high eye pressure and glaucoma. However, low blood pressure can cause poor circulation to the optic nerve and contribute to low pressure glaucoma. Regarding stress and glaucoma, I am not familiar with any studies of direct links between stress and glaucoma, but I think if there is a relationship, it would have to be related to stress over a long period of time to cause damage to the optic nerve.

I hope this was helpful and not too wordy.

Lesley ( Chris's wife)
 
Bridget,

There are a lot of different prescription eye drops out there that can help manage your eye pressure and situation. Pressure up to 20 is considered normal. I've been taking an eye drop called lumigan (one drop in each eye before bed daily) for 4 years now and my pressures have been normal. For me the stuff is like a miracle drug. I was 23 when first diagnosed as a glaucoma suspect and no doubt it can be scary. Being able to see is very important! There are several different types of glaucoma. Every 6 months I have to go in for a pressure check and also a couple times a year I go in for a test of the optic nerve (it's really no big deal and sound worse than it is). Once a year I have a field vision test (also easy). The key to management seems to be early detection. Some of the options can be scary and reading stuff online can certainly freak one out. You will be explained of several different options some of which are more invasive than others. My advise would be to talk to your doctor to see what's best. The good news is that managing glaucoma or preventing progression has come a long way in the last 10 years or so.
 
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