Glaucoma silently and painlessly steals your eyesight

Stop the progression of Glaucoma with advanced treatments from Eye Specialists of Louisiana

Glaucoma, the second leading cause of blindness in the United States, is commonly referred to as the silent thief. Why? Because nearly 50 percent of people with this condition don’t even realize they’re slowly going blind.

Glaucoma is a condition that damages your eye’s optic nerve. The fluid inside your eye, called aqueous humor, typically flows out of your eye through a mesh-like channel. For those with glaucoma, this channel gets blocked and the liquid builds up, causing excess pressure in the eye. This excess pressure can damage your vision by destroying the optic nerve, which is responsible for sending images to the brain.

Peripheral (side) vision is lost first and, if left untreated, vision loss progresses toward the center of your visual field. This can lead to blindness within a few years.

Common risk factors for glaucoma

While the exact cause of glaucoma remains unknown, several risk factors may increase your risk, including:

• Elevated or high eye pressure
• Those of African-American or Hispanic descent
• Family history of glaucoma

Protect your eyesight from silent thieves like glaucoma with regular, comprehensive eye exams.

Safe, effective surgical options for advanced glaucoma

If you’re like many American adults, your glaucoma may need advanced surgery from a skilled, board-certified specialist. Eye Specialists of Louisiana is highly skilled in the following state-of-the-art treatments:

• Selective laser trabeculoplasty (SLT)
  SLT helps relieve excess pressure on the optic nerve and increase the outflow of fluid. It is a painless, repeatable laser procedure that can be used as an effective alternative to eye drops in early open angle glaucoma.
• Laser peripheral iridotomy (LPI)
  Angle-closure glaucoma, or closed-angle glaucoma, occurs when the iris bulges forward and narrows or stops the aqueous fluid from draining properly. This procedure creates a small hole in the iris, allowing it to fall away from the drainage angle and unblock the drain.
• Endoscopic cyclophotocoagulation (ECP)
  Endoscopic cyclophotocoagulation is a relatively new laser treatment option for glaucoma. In this procedure the ciliary body, or portion of the eye responsible for producing fluid, is targeted with a precision laser. The energy generated by the laser effectively reduces fluid production and therefore intraocular pressure and any complications it can create.
• Tube-shunt surgery
  For this procedure, a flexible plastic tube with an attached silicone drainage pouch is placed in the eye to help drain excess fluid (aqueous humor).

To learn more about our surgical treatment options for glaucoma or to schedule an appointment, please call 225-768-7777. Our board-certified physicians look forward to helping you see clearly again.