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Experiencing Glaucoma - can someone please advise

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Julian_Williams
Julian_Williams

My Wife is a recent Glacoma sufferer.  She was diagnosed about two years ago and put on eye drops and was monitored every six months.  We thought tit was under control In the summer she felt something was wrong and we went to see the eye doctor who measured her eye pressure which was 32, he put her on more powerful drops.

She also had a cataract developing in the right eye, this was removed tow weeks ago, but her vision did not improve so we now know she has some galcoma damage.  She is partially sighted in the right eye.

She describes her experience as being a bit like looking through cobwebs with some goodish patches.  I have not read about this sense of "looking through cobwebs", is this really a glaucoma symptom or something different?  Any advice please about whether this is a common experience of Glaucoma sufferers.

We have bought a Icare home tonometer to measure her eye pressure.  We only received it yesterday and it is helping us monitor her pressure.  We can see the pressure going down after taking her drops. I think home tanometers are a very useful and recommend anyone with glaucoma to have one, although they are expensive (£2,000).  If we had got one when she was first diagnosed we would have known about the problem instantly and she might not have damaged her sight 

0 likes, 4 replies

4 Replies

  • superberg
    superberg Julian_Williams

    Posted

    Dear Julian,  I did the same thing;  thinking my cataracts was the problem, when in fact it was still the glaucoma.  Her description of what things look like is quite accurate.  Unfortunately, many Minimally Invasive Surgeries are done WITH cataract surgery.  I just had a Cypass implant with laser on my right eye (which I had a cataract removed 2 years ago;  wish I had waited).  It cost me over $4,000 to have it done because it is only FDA approved in the US WITH cataract surgery, because the cataract surgery futher lowers the pressure WITH a MIG implant.   I won't know if it will stop the progression since I have Normal Tension Glaucoma, which has a whole host of other problematic causes.   I too, have a self tonomoter, but I had to get the more expensive Reichert since I have very thin corneas, and it gives more accurate readings for those of us with thin corneas.    Good luck, get MORE than one Dr's opinion and check out FitEyes which is a community of Glaucoma sufferers who share lots of useful info and they have a seperate discussion group for those who use self-tonometry.  Best,  Susan

  • Julian_Williams
    Julian_Williams

    Posted

    Thanks Susan,

    Never heard of a Cypass implant, but I see it is  canal drainage?  Our eye surgeon said doing the two together does not work because one needs fast healing and the other slow healing, so it is no longer done to do both together in the UK.  My wife is going to see someone about canal treatment soon.  Is it safe and do people do on both eyes or just the one that is causing the most trouble. 

    My wife is worried to lose the sight in her good eye.  That is only natural

    This "looking through cobwebs" is a normal experience for people with Glaucoma

  • Alcantara
    Alcantara Julian_Williams

    Posted

    I was talking to someone at the hospital whilst waiting for my check up, and they described similar symptoms, saying it was like looking through a lace curtain, following a cataract operation.     But they said that it was not due to glaucoma, but it was the cataract op that had gone wrong.    They were waiting to have it corrected by further surgery!      What has the consultant said about this?        
    • Julian_Williams
      Julian_Williams Alcantara

      Posted

      Thank you Alcantara.

       am very confused about what my wife is experiencing, all comments are very sueful

      I will investigate further.  I am not sure is glaucoma does produce this lace/cobweb effect or whether it is as you say something to do with a physical aberration following the cataract op

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