Glaucoma Treatment in Piedmont, Norman and Edmond
There are many ways to treat glaucoma. Your ophthalmologist’s options include eye drops, medications, laser eye surgery, traditional eye surgery or some combination of treatments. Our goal is to prevent vision loss. Vision loss from glaucoma is permanent.
Dr. Hester can help you manage glaucoma when it is detected early. Most people with glaucoma will not lose their eyesight if they get proper medical treatment from an experienced eye surgeon and one of the most skilled ophthalmologists around. Dr. Hester has devoted his career to helping people see well and clearly for life.
What Is Glaucoma?
Glaucoma isn’t just one condition. It’s actually a group of eye diseases with one thing in common: they cause increasing damage to the optic nerve that connects your eye to your brain, which leads to increasing vision loss. This damage can cause blind spots or blurry spots in your side (peripheral) vision. Advanced glaucoma can lead to permanently dimmed vision or even blindness. Since early and moderate stage glaucoma generally has no symptoms, it is important to be examined by an ophthalmologist regularly to determine if you are likely to develop glaucoma.
Increased eye pressure is the most common risk factor for developing the disease. The pressure comes from clear fluid in the eye not draining properly. This fluid normally flows in and out through a mesh-like channel and nourishes the eye. If you have high eye pressure, the fluid is not draining properly so pressure builds up.
Glaucoma Diagnosis & Treatment
Unfortunately, no glaucoma treatment can restore vision that’s been lost. Treatment can only reduce the likelihood of additional vision loss. That is why screening and early detection are critically important.
Your ophthalmologist will examine your eyes regularly and tell if you are likely to have glaucoma. Glaucoma tests are painless and quick. The ophthalmologist uses a device called a tonometer to measure the pressure in your eyes. He or she also uses an ophthalmoscope and other instruments to examine the eye’s interior and detect damage to the optic nerve.
Your ophthalmologist may also test your field of vision to see where it’s clearest. He will test your peripheral vision, and may also use optical coherence tomography images of the nerve in the back of the eye to make a diagnosis.
Learn more about glaucoma from a compassionate ophthalmologist. Call Ralph Hester, MD, Ophthalmology at 405.271.9500. For your convenience, you can use our Request an Appointment form. Our glaucoma patients come to us from El Reno, Mustang, Norman, Yukon, Piedmont, Bethany and Edmond.
