Glaucoma is a serious disease that causes the visual nerve to gradually weaken and vision loss due to the increase in fluid pressure produced within the eye to a level that can damage the optic nerve. Glaucoma, also known as eye pressure and black water, is an important cause of blindness, especially in older ages. If left untreated, it can cause vision loss. It is a common eye disease that is the most common cause of permanent vision loss all over the world and affects millions of people.
WHAT CAUSES GLAUCOMA?
A fluid that circulates in the front of the eye to nourish the tissues. There are. This fluid is produced by cells inside the eye. The produced liquid is thrown out of the eye through the tiny hole and the channels connected to it. In some eyes, it cannot be expelled due to blockage in these channels and intraocular pressure rises.
WHO IS GLAUCOMA?
Glaucoma; It is seen in approximately 1 in 40 people over the age of forty and causes permanent vision loss in both eyes, that is, total blindness, in 1 in 20 people who develop the disease. It is seen in 2% of people over 40 years of age and 10% of people over 60 years of age. There are also types seen in infancy (congenital glaucoma) and childhood.
WHAT IS THE IMPORTANCE OF THE OPTIC NERVE IN GLAUCOMA?
WHAT IS THE INTROCULAR FLUID?
The eye consists of two parts, the anterior and posterior segments. The structure that separates these two parts is the lens. The anterior segment also consists of two parts: anterior and posterior chamber. These two parts are separated by the colored layer of the eye, which we call the iris. In front of the anterior chamber is the cornea. This section is filled with a water-like liquid called aqueous. Intraocular fluid, known as aqueous fluid, is secreted from the ciliary body near the contact points of the lens, flows from the front surface of the lens and reaches the anterior chamber. Here it provides nutrition to the lens and cornea. . It also creates the pressure that will shape the eye. This pressure is called intraocular pressure (IOP). It is essential to maintain this pressure within certain limits in order to protect vision.
The intraocular fluid produced comes to the front from the pupil and is filtered through the structure called trabecular network at the angle at the junction of the iris and cornea. There is a continuous fluid cycle. If this cycle is blocked during passage through the pupil or through the trabecular meshwork, IOP begins to rise. The increased pressure puts pressure on the optic nerve's entrance to the eye, killing the nerves
HOW IS THE NORMAL ITRAOCULAR PRESSURE?
The normal level is between 10-20 mm Hg mercury pressure. In eyes with glaucoma, this value usually exceeds 20 mm Hg mercury pressure. However, while there are people whose eyes are healthy but whose eye pressure is above 20 mm Hg, there are also people whose eye pressure is below 20 mm Hg who have damage to their optic nerve and need to be treated. In other words, intraocular pressure value is not the only criterion for disease diagnosis. Glaucoma may also occur in people with normal eye pressure and sensitive optic nerves.
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