Glaucoma is a serious eye disease that can eventually lead to blindness. It is important to have annual exams for this condition, especially if there is family history for Glaucoma. At Riviera Opticare, serving Mesa and Scottsdale, AZ, our optometry team diagnoses and treats glaucoma to help preserve your vision.
Glaucoma is a progressive disease that will keep getting worse without treatment. Glaucoma damages the optic nerve. This is typically caused by an increase in eye pressure when the eye cannot drain fluid properly. Glaucoma can eventually lead to vision loss. However, the disease can be managed and slowed down if caught early enough.
While there are some symptoms of glaucoma of blur or pressure sensation, most patients have no symptoms at all in the beginning. They may not notice that anything is wrong until the disease progresses to a point that the eyesight is permanently affected.
If glaucoma does cause early symptoms, it can be hard to tell what is wrong with your eyes without an eye exam. You may get blind spots, or you may find that your vision is patchy. You may have blurry vision, or you may lose some or all of your peripheral vision. Depending on the type of glaucoma you have, you might also experience nausea, severe headaches, and pain in your eyes.
Getting a glaucoma test is a part of undergoing a full eye exam. This test will tell our optometry expert if your eye pressure is high, which may indicate glaucoma. We also do visual field testing and optic nerve evaluation with high tech computer systems. Early treatment is the best thing you can do for glaucoma to keep as much of your vision as possible. Treatment usually involves medicated eye drops. If surgery is needed we will involve the appropriate surgeon to accommodate this treatment.
If you are experiencing signs of glaucoma, we can help. At Riviera Opticare in Mesa and Scottsdale, AZ, we will perform an eye exam to diagnose your condition. Call us today to schedule an appointment.