Drops or Laser Treatement for Glaucoma?

[keishashadow]

Have to make a decision within a month as to treatment

anybody go thru this?

What did you select - the drops or laser?

 

[CarolAnnC]

I can relay to you what members of my late husband's family including my DD have done with this.

They have a genetic strain of glaucoma in the family, and my oldest DD was diagnosed as pre-glaucoma 4 years ago.

The family members that contract it typically were in their 30's and 40's which is young for it. All of them chose to go the route of drops first, then some eventually went to laser surgery including my late FIL. He had the maximum amount of laser surgeries that they could do and was not seeing well at the end of his life at all.

My BIL had drops for about a couple of years when he was 30 or so and then had a laser treatment. He is doing very well now.

My DD is on stringent care with the eye specialists and they run batteries of tests on her every 6 months. She is not on glaucoma meds at this time though she does take Hydro Eye and Restasis. She has been stable and has not worsened so we have been encouraged. She is 25 and a high school English teacher. She relies on her eyes so much (as we all do) and I have been so worried about her vision. Thankfully, she is doing well now though.

Good luck to you and keep us posted!

 

[pumba]

I am on year 13 with drops......yah everynight I do drops and go every six months for a checkup......I had to go back three months this last time because they wanted to check on my rise in the pressure.......I do have to have surgery in a few months for cataracts so they will most likely do a gluacoma at the same time. My mom had this condition also and after her cataract surgery she did not require drops anymore...
I think that doing these drops has been no big deal and my daughter (bless her heart) also has the high normal pressure right now......so they check her every so often also.......

 

[keishashadow]

thanks for the info ; sorry to hear of your issues though encouraged as to your comments.

they've been watching my pressure every 6 months for years, it took a big increase a year or so ago, broke the threshold in one eye last time & dr said i must make a treatment decision when i go back...or else

no family history ; vision field test is fine, no cupping, near perfection distant vision.

weird thing is DH got me to switch to his eye dr. (since he's had issues with the above & has been monitored for years)...bingo, i wound up with the diagnosis.

dr did say the drops would make my blue eyes turn brown

lots of confusing stuff out there i've read on 'net; not sure if it's valid or not...suggestions to stop caffinated products, 20 min aerobic exercise every day (good advice regardless I suppose )...anyone try it?

confused as to whether you must use the drops if you do have the laser done; i was shell-shocked when @ the drs & forgot to ask-d'oh.

 

[pumba]

my eyes are still blue......I know that there is always that slim chance that your pressure could come back again ....but surgery is always the last resort for this type of disease......
never heard about the caffiene products....weird..

 

[keishashadow]

do the drops sting? can you just put them in as with regular eye drops or is there more involved timewise.

hmm, wonder if different drops have different color changes...dr didn't say which class of drops. i read that one of the "types" had a side effect of losing appetite & subsequent weight loss (that would be a rather nice bonus for me lol). Did read that one can't be used if you have allergy to sulfa (which i have).

what i was confused about was the fact that i had to "pick" which of 3 routes i wanted to go. i'm used to a dr telling me what i need to do.

1) decide on the spot - no thanks, i'll be back

2) drops

3) laser

info i've found seems to indicate that laser doesn't come into play until after the drops have been used. my dr stated that there are some studies that show that doing the laser 1st (early in treatment) produces better results long term . he said the worst side effect would be bleeding in the eye (that could be handled with medication) and slight worsening of vision.

 

[CarolAnnC]

I would definitely seek a second opinion and search out the experts in your local area.

My DD started with local doctors in NH who recommended a team of doctors from Mass Eye and Ear for her (affiliated with MGH in Boston). She now sees one of the best here in the Chicago area.

Definitely is a good idea to have more than one opinion at least.

 

[pumba]

I use Xalatan and that is the medication that turns blue eyes brown......but nope still have blue eyes.....
I have one of the best in our area and am thankful that he has always been up front with me about progression of the disease and now the cataracts......I will have that surgery this summer after our trips are done.....
Good idea to have a second opinon....

 

[keishashadow]

good idea, thanks again!