If you are below 50 years of age and find difficult to remember 7 numbers,
you need to give attention to your brain health.

A person with weak brain can have many psychological disorders.

 

Glaucoma is a eye disease that can lead to loss of vision.

It mostly goes unnoticed by an individual till it is at an irreversible stage. 

Definition of Glaucoma
Glaucoma is a group of eye diseases that damage the optic nerve. The optic nerve is the main nerve to the eye (located in the back of the eye) that is responsible for transmitting electrical impulses to the brain. Damage usually occurs as a result of elevated pressure of the fluid (aqueous humor) in the eye. This damage results in gradual visual changes and then loss of vision.

Description of Glaucoma
The eye is protected by the sclera (the white covering of the eye). At the front of the eye is a clear window (the cornea) that lets light in. The iris is the colored part of the eye that controls the amount of light that can enter the eye by automatically opening and closing the pupil (the opening of the eye).

The lens (the portion of the eye lying behind the pupil) focuses light onto the retina (the innermost layer of the eye and the sensitive organ upon where light rays are focused). Nerve fibers and blood vessels in the retina gather together to form the optic nerve which carries images to the brain. The place where the optic nerve leaves the eye is called the optic disc.

The front part of the eye is filled with aqueous humor that nourishes the lens, iris and cornea, as well as maintains the shape of the eye. This fluid is continuously produced every hour by ciliary tissues.

The fluid circulates from behind the iris through the opening at the center of the pupil and into the spaces between the iris and cornea. Since this fluid is constantly produced, it must be drained. The fluid drains through an area called the drainage angle (located where the iris and cornea meet) to the trabecular meshwork (the valve that regulates pressure within the eye) to a channel (called the canal of Schlemm), and then to a system of small veins outside of the eye, called the drainage canals.

When there is a problem in the drainage, the fluid builds up in the eye and presses against the optic nerve (called intraocular pressure or IOP), resulting in glaucoma.

This increased fluid pressure actually pushes the optic nerve back into a "cupped" or concave shape. If the intraocular pressure remains too high for too long, the extra pressure damages parts of the optic nerve.

This damage appears as gradual visual changes and then loss of vision. The early visual changes are very slight and do not affect the central vision the center portion of what is seen when looking straight ahead or when reading. Certain parts of the peripheral vision (the top, sides and bottom) are affected first. Glaucoma usually occurs in both eyes, but extra fluid pressure first begins to build up in one eye.

There are many types of glaucoma, but the two most common types are open-angle glaucoma and closed angle (angle-closure) glaucoma.

Open-angle glaucoma, (also called primary open-angle glaucoma and chronic glaucoma) accounts for 90 percent of all glaucoma cases and occurs when the trabecular meshwork becomes blocked and the fluid can't get to the normal drainage canals. This blockage results in fluid build-up and intraocular pressure. The fluid build-up happens gradually.

Closed angle glaucoma, (also called acute glaucoma or angle closure glaucoma), accounts for about 9 percent of all glaucoma cases and occurs when the opening between the cornea and iris narrows, such that the fluid cannot get to the trabecular meshwork and normal drainage channels. This narrowing results in fluid build-up and intraocular pressure. The fluid build-up happens very quickly.

Other less common glaucomas include:

* normal tension glaucoma: optic nerve is damaged even though intraocular pressure is consistently within a normal range

* congenital glaucoma: incorrect or incomplete development of the eye's drainage canals during the prenatal period

* childhood glaucoma: open-angle glaucoma in infancy, childhood or adolescence

* secondary glaucoma: occurs as a result of eye injury, inflammation or tumor, or in advanced cases of cataracts or diabetes

 





 
If you are below 50 years of age and find difficult to remember 7 numbers,
you need to give attention to your brain health.