Cataracts cause gradual loss of clarity, while glaucoma can cause slow or rapid vision loss and damage to the optic nerve. Glaucoma is treated with eye drops, laser treatment, or surgery, while cataracts are treated with surgery. Both conditions are more common in people with diabetes. Early diagnosis and treatment are important for preventing irreversible blindness from glaucoma.
Cataracts and glaucoma are both conditions that affect the eye and both cause vision loss, but while cataracts cause a painless loss of clarity gradually, glaucoma can affect vision either slowly and subtly or quickly and painfully. Cataracts form when changes in the lens, the part of the eye where light is focused, cause clouding and block the passage of light. Glaucoma is a condition in which increased pressure within the eye damages the optic nerve, which carries visual information to the brain. If left untreated, glaucoma causes irreversible blindness, unlike the vision loss caused by cataracts, which can be treated with cataract surgery.
Both cataracts and glaucoma are more common in people with diabetes. Glaucoma tends to affect both eyes at once, although one can be worse than the other. There are different types of glaucoma and the most common is known as primary open angle glaucoma, which tends to develop slowly. The fluid in the chamber at the front of the eye, which normally drains away as new fluid is produced, is prevented from draining when small drainage channels are blocked. The pressure inside the eye increases and causes damage to the optic nerve.
Many people with glaucoma are thought to have optic nerve weakness that makes damage more likely, and in some people, the pressure in the eye might even seem within normal limits, but nerve damage still occurs. This is known as normal tension glaucoma. Glaucoma is treated using eye drops that lower the pressure inside the eye, and if drug treatment fails, laser treatment or surgery may be used.
Cataracts and glaucoma can both be treated surgically, but where the vision loss from cataracts can be reversed, vision loss due to glaucoma cannot. Cataract surgery is usually recommended as soon as cataract symptoms interfere with daily life. The symptoms of these conditions are very diverse and while glaucoma leads to a slow loss of the external visual field that is difficult to notice, cataracts can cause blurred vision and a glare from bright lights. Acute glaucoma, which occurs suddenly, causes rapid vision loss along with symptoms such as pain, nausea, and blurred vision, with visible halos around lights.
Several surgical methods are used to treat cataracts and glaucoma. Cataracts are removed from the eye and replaced with artificial lenses, while glaucoma surgery may involve using a laser to open blocked drainage channels, or the part of the eye containing the channels may be removed. The outcome can be positive for both cataracts and glaucoma if the conditions are diagnosed and treated successfully. In the case of glaucoma, early diagnosis is important and regular eye exams are needed to detect the condition and stop the progressive loss of vision.
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