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Thursday, July 12, 2012

The Trauma of Glaucoma: How eye injury can cause irreversible blindness


Glaucoma, a major eye disease that gradually steals vision, is ceaselessly lurking as every injury or damage to the eye can potentially cause a lifetime of blindness.

Among the many risk factors of Glaucoma, the country’s number one cause of blindness, previous eye injury cannot be underestimated. 

While most eye injuries can be given proper treatment, the risk of glaucoma may persist. Glaucoma may not be contracted immediately after an injury. It can develop over time, according to the Philippine Glaucoma Society (PGS), the organization of the country’s leading eye experts on glaucoma.

“The Philippine Glaucoma Society with Allergan is fighting to rid the country of this dreadful disease. Eye injury like many other glaucoma risk factors is not to be taken too lightly. It may cause the onset of a specific but equally damaging type of glaucoma, which is Traumatic Glaucoma,” said Dr. Biboy Martinez, PGS vice president. 

A previous eye injury may damage the drainage channels of the eye causing increased eye pressure, this elevated pressure may then cause damage to the optic nerve causing glaucoma.  

Traumatic glaucoma is usually cause by blunt trauma, which could either be a direct blow to the head or a direct injury to the eye.