Difference between glaucoma and cataract

Some people have both conditions, while others may only have one. But glaucoma isn’t worse than cataracts, or vice versa — they are separate conditions triggered by different factors, each with varying levels of severity. Both eye conditions are treatable, however, especially if caught early.

Do Cataracts Cause Glaucoma? Cataracts do not cause glaucoma per se, although there are certain rare forms (outside the scope of this discussion) in which the cataract is the causative factor of elevated eye pressure and damage to the optic nerve.

Less commonly, a cataract can be a contributing factor to optic nerve damage or elevated eye pressure. Cataracts can also play a role in primary-angle closure glaucoma due to additional narrowing of the drainage angle as the lens thickens from the cataract.

Conditions that can be mistaken for glaucoma include compressive or infiltrative lesions of the optic nerve, previous ischemic optic neuropathy (both arteritic and non-arteritic), congenital and hereditary optic neuropathies, post-traumatic optic neuropathy and inflammatory and demyelinating optic neuritis.

Both cataracts and glaucoma can be treated surgically but unfortunately, the loss of vision caused by glaucoma cannot be reversed whereas it can be reversed with cataract surgery. When cataracts begin to have a detrimental impact on everyday life, it is time to have them surgically removed.

Glaucoma Timeline

Even with treatment, about 15 percent of the time glaucoma can lead to blindness in at least one eye over a period of 20 years. Fortunately, glaucoma typically progresses very slowly, over years. The progression of vision loss can be stunted, slowed, or even stopped with treatment.

It’s done in a hospital and usually takes 1 to 2 hours. In this operation, the surgeon implants a tiny tube, or shunt, onto the white of your eye.

New research suggests that exercise — particularly moderate- to vigorous-intensity, such as brisk walking or jogging — may help to lower the risk of glaucoma, a leading cause of blindness. Share on Pinterest Regular physical activity can reduce your risk of glaucoma by up to 73 percent.

Within the past year, two new topical medications have been approved for the treatment of glaucoma: VYZULTA™ and Rhopressa®. VYZULTA™ is a modification of a current class of medications currently used to treat glaucoma – the prostaglandin analogs.

During glaucoma surgery, you will be awake but won’t be able to see what is happening.

Trabeculectomy, still considered the gold standard in glaucoma surgery (commonly performed today with an antimetabolite such as mitomycin-C), remains the most commonly performed glaucoma surgery, with a high success rate in most groups and glaucoma diagnoses, especially in the hands of an experienced surgeon.

Success Rate

Most of the related studies document follow-up for a one year period. In those reports, it shows that in older patients, glaucoma filtering surgery is successful in about 70-90% of cases, for at least one year. Occasionally, the surgically-created drainage hole begins to close and the pressure rises again.

Glaucoma is treated by lowering your eye pressure (intraocular pressure). Depending on your situation, your options may include prescription eyedrops, oral medications, laser treatment, surgery or a combination of any of these.

People who engage in anaerobic exercise may hold their breath temporarily while they’re straining, and this too can raise eye pressure and further increase the risk of developing glaucoma or worsening vision loss in people who have the disease. Examples of anaerobic exercise can include: Situps and pullups.

Treatment needs to be carried out for life. Glaucoma can be controlled, but there is currently no cure. When medication is chosen, eye drops are usually prescribed. Some of the drops need only be used once daily while some require twice or three times a day dosing.

A high BMI has been linked to intraocular pressure and glaucoma. It’s best to avoid foods high in saturated fats such as butter, cheese, and whole milk, and such fatty meats as salami and bacon. Caffeinated coffee increases intraocular pressure, so moderating consumption may be a good idea.

Have a Banana

Magnesium has been shown to improve blood flow to the eye and may also help protect retinal ganglion cells, which process visual information in the eye and transmit it to the brain via the optic nerve.

Glaucoma is the result of damage to the optic nerve. As this nerve gradually deteriorates, blind spots develop in your visual field. For reasons that doctors don’t fully understand, this nerve damage is usually related to increased pressure in the eye.