This common eye disease can affect everyone from infants to the elderly. Do you know about it?

According to the "China Glaucoma Guidelines (2020)" released by the Ophthalmology Branch of the Chinese Medical Association, the number of people suffering from glaucoma in my country reached 21 million in 2020, of which 5.67 million were blinded. Su Yan, deputy chief physician of the Department of Ophthalmology at the Oriental Hospital of Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, said that glaucoma is a lifelong eye disease, and early detection and early treatment are the key.

Patients cover a wide age range

To understand glaucoma, you first need to know what intraocular pressure is. Intraocular pressure refers to the pressure of the contents of the eyeball on the wall of the eyeball, just like an inflated balloon, you will feel a certain amount of pressure when you press it. As for glaucoma, it refers to a common blinding eye disease characterized by pathological increase in intraocular pressure, characteristic optic nerve atrophy and visual function damage. Intermittent or continuous increase in intraocular pressure causes damage to various tissues and visual functions of the eyeball, and should be treated in time.

Glaucoma can be divided into primary glaucoma and secondary glaucoma. Primary glaucoma usually affects both eyes. If one eye is affected, the other eye should also be checked in time.

It is worth noting that glaucoma can occur in people from infants to the elderly, but it is more common in the elderly. The prevalence of glaucoma increases with age.

In addition, glaucoma is hereditary. People with a family history of glaucoma should go to the hospital for regular checkups. If you find that your eyes are swollen, you have a headache, or you see rainbows when you look at lights, you must go to the hospital for a checkup and cooperate with the doctor for timely diagnosis and treatment.

Do not use eye pressure-lowering prescriptions blindly

Once glaucoma is diagnosed, the key to treatment is to lower intraocular pressure and reduce the damage to the internal tissues of the eye caused by high intraocular pressure. Different types of glaucoma require different treatment methods, mainly medication and surgery. Regular checkups are required during treatment to avoid asymptomatic gradual blindness.

In fact, in addition to Western medicine, there is the Five Wheels and Eight Circles theory of ophthalmology in the theoretical system of traditional Chinese medicine. Traditional Chinese medicine believes that glaucoma is caused by emotional injury, liver and gallbladder fire, liver and kidney yin deficiency, liver and stomach coldness, etc., which cause blood vessels to be blocked and Shenshui (i.e. aqueous humor) to stagnate. It is related to emotional excitement, excessive fatigue, spleen and stomach coldness and other inducements. It can also be caused by congenital factors and other eye diseases. Single Chinese medicine can be used, such as Pinellia, Poria, Angelica, Plantago, Burdock, Ligustrum lucidum, etc., which can play a role in lowering intraocular pressure to varying degrees. Among the traditional Chinese medicine prescriptions, Poria mixture, Four Seeds mixture, Wuling powder, etc. also have a certain effect on lowering intraocular pressure.

However, it should be noted that most of these Chinese medicines or prescriptions listed lack long-term rigorous systematic randomized controlled observations and clinical verification. Patients should not use them blindly.

Su Yan also warned the majority of glaucoma patients that some advertisements have no scientific basis and are not recognized by the ophthalmology academic community. Blindly believing in and using some so-called "magic pills" will not only cause economic losses, but may also cause serious consequences such as accelerated blindness due to delayed treatment. Therefore, it is necessary to attach importance to the diagnosis and treatment of glaucoma, and early detection, early intervention, and early treatment can improve the visual quality of patients.

Keeping a peaceful mind is important

Wu Wei, deputy chief physician of the Glaucoma Department of the Ophthalmology Center of the Second Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine, said that glaucoma is also a disease related to the body and mind. People who are nervous, anxious, and irritable are more likely to be affected. 70% to 80% of acute attacks of primary angle-closure glaucoma are related to mood changes. Therefore, glaucoma patients should maintain a peaceful state of mind, relax, avoid excessive mood swings, and avoid anger and anxiety. A regular daily life is good for the treatment of the disease.

Duan Xuanchu, member of the National Technical Guidance Group for Blindness Prevention, member of the Blindness Prevention Group of the Ophthalmology Branch of the Chinese Medical Association, and doctoral supervisor at the Aier Eye Institute of Central South University, also proposed that glaucoma patients must pay attention to maintaining good living habits at home, not smoking, drinking, staying up late, or drinking large amounts of water at one time; do moderate exercise every day, but avoid activities such as excessive bending, lowering the head, holding the breath, and carrying weight.

Finally, Wu Wei also reminded glaucoma patients that during treatment and protection, although the most important thing is to lower intraocular pressure and keep it within the safe target range, the baseline intraocular pressure of each patient is different, and the severity of the disease is different. Therefore, the impact of high-risk factors such as corneal thickness, diabetes, and high myopia on the progression of glaucoma visual field should also be considered. Therefore, doctors will set personalized target intraocular pressure values ​​for each patient, and regularly perform visual field, OCT and other examinations to comprehensively evaluate and adjust medication plans. Through the joint efforts of doctors and patients, the goal of "no loss of vision, no worries in life" can be achieved.