Posts Tagged ocular hypertension
Top Causes of Intraocular Pressure and Glaucoma in Old Age
Posted by admin in Uncategorized on November 27, 2011
Everyone likes the idea of growing old gracefully, but there are realities to aging that we must face up to, not least that the body degenerates. When it comes to the eyes, this can mean numerous conditions that threaten our sight, with an increase in intraocular pressure amongst them.
With regards to the older generation, statistics have consistently shown that age brings with it an increase in susceptibility to a wide range of health risks. For example, some 66 per cent of people over the age of 60 are expected to develop cataracts in an eye.
Thankfully, lens replacement surgery can quickly and easily remove the flawed lens in such cases, restoring sight to as close to perfection as possible. This need for eye lens replacements is common in people aged over 50, and research has shown that the same age group also has an increased chance of developing ocular hypertension, or pressure in the eye, leading to the development of glaucoma. The figure increase dramatically as they head into their 70s.
This build up of pressure in the eye tends to go unnoticed, and the first hint of something wrong does not usually come until sight is already affected. This increase in pressure is caused by the drainage system in the eye being blocked.
With more fluid being pumped in and only a minimal amount being successfully drained away, pressure increases. This can take quite some time to develop into a major problem, like glaucoma, but is important to keep such dangerous conditions at bay.
Why the Older Generation is Susceptible
It seems as though the older generation has a particularly hard time of things, as they are declared most susceptible to just about every condition there is. But the simple fact is that aging, by definition, weakens the body, reducing the ability to ward off a host of illnesses, diseases and conditions.
With this comes some health problems that can damage our eyes by either reducing the quality of our sight or taking sight away from us completely. Blood pressure increases because blood vessels tend to stiffen with age, while the development of diabetes through a long held sugary diet can also take place later in life.
Development of Diabetes
Diabetes has been tentatively linked to glaucoma, which can develop as a result of ocular hypertension within the eye. It may not be a major cause, but it is a factor that consultants believe has a say in the rise in pressure in the eye. Of course, diabetes has a lot to do with diet, with sugary foods consumed over a lifetime leading to high blood sugar rates and a series of health issues.
Eye Surgery Complications
Laser eye surgery is used to deal with some common eye conditions, such as myopia, hyperopia and astigmatism. These conditions relate to the cornea and the refractive errors that can cause double vision and poor focusing. While none of these conditions are exclusive to the older generation, they can develop over time.
As part of the post surgery treatment, and specifically the risk of dry eye and the discomfort it can cause, eye drops containing steroids are commonly prescribed. The use of steroids has been known to contribute to a build up in pressure within the eye too.
There can also be complications in other kinds of lens replacement surgery, where because of a slight scratch or abrasion can cause an inflammation of the eye, which can also add pressure.
Falls and Knocks
Unfortunately, as we get older we can also suffer from loss of balance and falling more often. Sometimes these falls can involve an impact which, if strong enough, can result in an eye injury. While this injury largely goes unnoticed in terms of sight, it can be significant enough to disrupt the delicate balance of eye fluid production and drainage efficiency. Over several months, even years, the intraocular pressure in the eye can increase to quite a high rate.
While the development of eye lens replacement procedures has certainly helped to restore sight in the older generation, there still remain real threats to sight in that age group, with an increase in pressure in the eye, ocular hypertension, being one and glaucoma another.
Tags: diseases and conditions, drainage system, generation statistics, lens replacement, ocular hypertensionRelated posts
The Symptoms And Types Of Hypertension
Posted by admin in Uncategorized on November 6, 2011
Hypertension has several symptoms, high blood pressure Systemic, arterial hypertension or hypertensive heart disease but the commonest variety of hypertension is know as essential hypertension. Strangely enough there is no part of the world that hypertension is completely absent, hypertension is a medical condition that tends to favour some people more than others, this is the reason there are several names for the illness in different parts of the world .
It’s more popular among the elite class and the socialites of our present world, it is even on debate that it should be considered a symptoms complex and not a disease state. The proponents say it is too common to be classified as a disease since it is even without any specific symptoms of its own yet it herald some detrimental disorder such as kidney failure or nerve paralysis, so many regards it as a symptom of a bigger disorder.
But I think illness incapacitate and annihilate. And hypertension can stylishly perform both of these tasks and it will do them very accurately too. To me illness are treated with drugs and high blood pressure is known to respond to several drugs. Arterial hypertension or systemic hypertension is the common type. It affects the heart and the general blood circulation. The unpopular hypertension is in various categories. This type affects organs and tissues of the body they have no direct link with high performance of the heart itself . A good example is the type which affect the lungs and the blood flows to the airway . This is called ‘pulmonary hypertension’ [pulmo is latin word for the lungs]
There are some other unpopular types of hypertension too and they include ocular hypertension which means that the eyeball structure are under an increased influence of tension from the fluids bathing them .
This results is some degree of visual disturbance or even blindness. A good evidence of ocular hypertension is the illness of the eye called glaucoma. Another beautiful subgroups of the unpopular variety of hypertension is the one which afflicts the liver. The liver may be diseased and it may be working under an increased pressure . This means that blood flow is greatly impeded and its general workability is impaired . This type of hypertension is called portal hypertension. It is a notable killer among alcoholics hepatitis.
There is post traumatic hypertension too and it is high blood pressure which is sequel to an accident, often a near fatal one . Also there is high blood pressure arising from defective ductless gland function. It is referred to as hypertension of endocrine origin . Some other variant do exist of the popular class of arterial hypertension and they include the unstable blood pressure disorder such as labile hypertension and paroxysmal hypertension , but there are other two not well know subgroups of the popular arterial high blood pressure disorder that must be mentioned .
They are the arterial hypertensive heart disorder caused solely by pregnancy or that which has been corrected by surgery, these high blood pressure states are respectively called pregnancy induced hypertension [PH] and surgically correctable hypertension.
Tags: essential hypertension, ocular hypertension, systemic arterial hypertension, systemic hypertension, types of hypertension