Glaucoma Diagnosis and Management

Glaucoma is a leading source of vision loss and usually occurs without patient awareness. Glaucoma describes eye disorders that involve damage to the optic nerve, which sends visual signals from your eye to your brain. This loss of nerve tissue can result in loss of vision.

Primary open-angle glaucoma is one of the most common disorders. It results from an increased pressure inside the eye, which can cause damage to the optic nerve. A damaged nerve can lead to vision loss or even blindness. This pressure can build slowly and be difficult to detect in everyday life. It may start by affecting only your peripheral vision.

Pressure is not the only indicator of glaucoma, as high pressure does not always lead to glaucoma and glaucoma can develop in spite of normal eye pressure. Anyone can develop glaucoma, although it is most common in people over 40.

Valley Vision Eyecare has the sophisticated technology to diagnose, treat and follow glaucoma.

Visual Field Analysis

Your side vision is important but people rarely are aware of it

The Octopus Visual Field is a special automated procedure used to perform perimetry, a test that measures the entire area of peripheral vision that can be seen while the eye is focused on a central point. During this test, lights of varying intensities appear in different parts of the visual field while the patient’s eye is focused on a certain spot. The perception of these lights is charted and then compared to results of a healthy eye at the same age of the patient in order to determine if any damage has occurred. This procedure is performed quickly and easily in about 8 minutes, and is effective in diagnosing and monitoring the progress of glaucoma.

Patients with glaucoma will often undergo this test on a regular basis in order to determine how quickly the disease is progressing. The Octopus Visual Field test can also be used to detect conditions within the optic nerve of the eye, and certain neurological conditions as well.
Pachymetry

Pachymetry measures the thickness of the cornea and is commonly done on glaucoma patients to check for additional risk factors for glaucoma.
Gonioscopy

Gonioscopy allows the doctor to view the internal anatomy of the eye and its drainage system and is often done on glaucoma patients.