When to Treat Eye Pressure?

Glaucoma refers to a condition in which your optic nerve is damaged. When this occurs, you may begin to lose your vision. Glaucoma is associated with an increased pressure in your eye, called intraocular pressure, because of an excess of fluid. According to the Mayo Clinic, optic nerve damage due to glaucoma is the second-highest cause of blindness. The vision loss occurs gradually. Regular eye exams are essential for diagnosing this condition early. When treated early enough, you may be able to prevent further damage to your eyes.

Intraocular Pressure

• Intraocular pressure is often an indicator of glaucoma. A normal eye pressure level falls between 12 mm Hg and 21 mm Hg. Anything above that is considered to be higher than normal. However, having a high intraocular pressure does not mean that you definitely have glaucoma. You'll need to have your doctor conduct other eye exams that can confirm the presence of glaucoma. You may simply have optic nerves that are able to tolerate higher pressures. Patients who have high pressure levels--but do not have glaucoma--are known as ocular hypertensives.

Exams

• A test called tonometry is the procedure that your doctor will use to check your eye pressure. This exam is painless; your eyes will be numbed with eye drops. Because eye pressure is not a foolproof indicator of glaucoma, your doctor may need to run other tests on your eyes. He may check your peripheral vision with a visual field test. He also may use an instrument that allows him to check for damage in the optic nerve. A test called pachymetry checks how thick your corneas are. This is important because unusually thick corneas can drive up your eye pressure regardless of whether you have glaucoma. The reverse is true of thin corneas.

Treatment

• If your intraocular pressure is high and you have other indicators of glaucoma, your first treatment option is usually medicated eye drops. You'll need to follow your doctor's instructions exactly regarding the administration of these drops; if you fail to, you may damage your optic nerve further. Your doctor may prescribe more than one type of eye drop. In this case, ask your doctor how long you should wait between drops. If your eye drops aren't sufficiently treating your glaucoma, your doctor may prescribe oral medications to protect your optic nerve and bring your eye pressure down. As a last resort, you may need to consider surgery. Glaucoma surgery helps the fluid in your eye drain. Ask your doctor about laser surgery, which requires only minimal recovery time.