Health Issue: Glaucoma

 When should you contact a doctor?

• If you have severe eye pain or a sudden loss of vision, especially loss of peripheral vision
• If you have risk factors for glaucoma and have not been screened for the condition
• Everyone over age 40 should have an eye examination at least once every 5 years, and more often if in a high-risk group.

An examination of the eye may be used to diagnose glaucoma. However, checking the intraocular pressure alone (tonometry) is not enough because eye pressure changes. The doctor will need to examine the inside of the eye by looking through the pupil, often while the pupil is dilated.

Usually the doctor will perform a complete examination of the eyes.

Tests may include:

• Gonioscopy (use of a special lens to see the outflow channels of the angle)
• Intraocular pressure measurement by tonometry
• Optic nerve imaging (photographs of the interior of the eye)
• Pupillary reflex response
• Refraction
• Retinal examination
• Slit lamp examination
• Visual acuity
• Visual field measurement