Glaucoma is a disease that damages the eye's optic nerve. The optic nerve is connected to the retina — a layer of light-sensitive tissue lining the back of the eye — and is made up of many nerve fibers, like an electric cable is made up of many wires. It is the optic nerve that sends signals from your retina to your brain, where these signals are interpreted as the images you see.

Glaucoma normally progresses so slowly that there are usually no warning signs before permanent damage has occurred to the eye. Mid Atlantic Eye Physicians doctors and staff believe it is vital to educate patients about the importance of a yearly eye exam to increase early detection and treatment of glaucoma to help prevent vision loss.

What is glaucoma?

In a healthy eye, clear fluid is constantly being made behind the iris and leaving the eye through a microscopic drainage canal in the front of the eye. If this drainage channel becomes blocked, the pressure inside the eye goes up and often causes glaucoma damage to the optic nerve. This is the nerve that connects the eye to the brain so damage to it causes loss of vision.

Who is at risk?

While the causes of glaucoma are not completely known, we do know that risk factors for its development include a family history of glaucoma, race and older age. Glaucoma may affect people of any age from newborns to the elderly but is more common in adults as they approach their senior years. African-Americans, Hispanics and people with diabetes are also at increased risk of developing the disease.