Glaucoma is known as the ‘Thief of Sight’. And so, World Glaucoma Awareness Week is an important initiative that aims to bring attention to this ‘devious’ disease, which can sneak up on a person without their knowledge and take away valuable sight. If left untreated, this lost vision cannot be returned.
In fact, glaucoma is the number one cause of irreversible blindness in the world.
Melbourne ophthalmologist Dr Alex Ioannidis of Vision Eye Institute encourages everyone to ask a friend, loved one – or themselves – this simple question: have you had an eye examination in the past two years?
“It’s extremely important for people over the age of 50 to have regular eye examinations, especially if there’s a history of glaucoma in the family,” says Dr Ioannidis, who speaks fluent Greek and Spanish.
“The reason for this is simple: the sooner glaucoma is detected and treatment begins, the better chance you have of retaining good quality of vision.”
Dr Ioannidis, a glaucoma specialist, has recently adopted new technology for the treatment of glaucoma.
The iStent is a 1mm titanium implant, which is inserted into the eye during cataract surgery.
“Studies have shown that this amazing implant, which to the human eye looks like a grain of sand, can reduce intraocular pressure in patients who have mild glaucoma.”
The device works in this way: the trabecular meshwork is an area of tissue located at the front of the eye near the cornea and is responsible for draining fluid, called the aqueous humour, from the eye. If the natural outflow from the area is inhibited, the intraocular pressure builds up. This can lead to the optic nerve, which is responsible for sending visual messages from the eye to the brain, being irreparably damaged.
“By inserting the iStent, the natural outflow of the aqueous humour can bypass the affected meshwork, via a silicone tube, thus allowing reduction in pressure on the optic nerve.”
At this stage the device can only be implanted in a glaucoma patient during cataract surgery. However, Dr Ioannidis has been using the iStent for five months now.
“I’ve seen some great results,” he says.
“The problem with people who have mild glaucoma is that they sometimes forget to use their drops. For patients who have had the iStent implanted, they can reduce the frequency of drops – some can even go drop free for a period of time. However, it is still vital to monitor this on a regular basis.”
He also points to a recent development in glaucoma drops.
“Unfortunately, some people are reluctant to use their drops because they can irritate the eyes. This reluctance greatly concerns ophthalmologists because drops are vital for retaining vision.”
“Recently, preservative free drops have come on the market, which makes the experience far more comfortable for patients.”
Even with these developments, the fact remains that glaucoma doesn’t discriminate. This World Glaucoma Awareness Week, make sure you or a loved one don’t become a statistic.