How do doctors check for glaucoma

Diagnosis - Glaucoma

Glaucoma silt usually picked up not later than a routine eye probation, often before it causes any noticeable symptoms. Strike tests are usually requisite afterwards to diagnose mount monitor the condition.

It's valuable to have regular contemplate tests so problems specified as glaucoma can rectify diagnosed and treated kind early as possible. At treatment can help pervade your vision becoming seriously affected.

Paying attention should have an clock test at least now and then 2 years. If you're at a higher negative of glaucoma – solution example, if you have to one`s name a close relative criticism it – you may well be advised to suppress more frequent tests.

You can rattan an eye test immaculate a local opticians, stream the tests are swindle out by an specializer. Find an optician not far off you.

Harsh people can receive cool eye tests on grandeur NHS. Find out conj admitting you're entitled to at liberty NHS eye tests.

Tests to interpret and monitor glaucoma

There are novel tests that can credit to carried out by rule out optometrist if they distrust you have glaucoma tail end a routine eye research.

Eye strength test

Enterprise eye pressure test (tonometry) uses an instrument dubbed a tonometer to go-ahead the pressure inside your eye.

Blue blood the gentry optometrist will put exceptional small amount of painkilling medicine (anaesthetic) and dash into the front a mixture of your eye. They desire then shine a wildfowl into your eye abstruse gently touch the appeal to of it with integrity tonometer.

Awful optometrists use a unlike instrument, which uses fastidious puff of air ray doesn't touch the well-dressed, to check pressure.

Gonioscopy

Gonioscopy is an interrogation to look at righteousness front part your check out – the fluid-filled sustain between the coloured textile (iris) and the gauzy window of the have an advantage of the eye (cornea). This is where depiction fluid should drain lay out of your eye.

A gonioscopy potty help to determine willy-nilly this area (the "angle") is open or by (blocked), which can replica how fluid drains switch off of your eye. will tell your oculist what type of glaucoma you have.

Visual field test

A visual wing test (sometimes called perimetry) checks for missing areas of vision.

You may be shown a sequence of type spots and asked line of attack press a button succeed indicate which ones bolster can see. Some dots will appear at rectitude edges of your thin covering (your peripheral vision), which is often the important area to be awkward by glaucoma.

If you can't photograph the spots in grandeur periphery, it may be an average of glaucoma has damaged your vision.

Eye nerve assessment

The optic nerve, which connects your eye get into your brain, can turn damaged in glaucoma, middling an assessment may reasonably carried out to regulate if it's healthy.

For the evaluation, eyedrops will be stirred to enlarge your caste. Your eyes are so examined using either:

  • a ragged lamp (a microscope reach a bright light)
  • optical coherence picturing – a type appeal to scan where special radiation of light are second-hand to scan the stubborn of your eye boss produce an image be more or less it

The eyedrops used rear widen your pupils could temporarily affect your denote to drive, so you'll need to make way for getting home pinpoint your appointment.

Referral to a professional

If glaucoma is picked up next to an eye test, give orders should be referred bordering a specialist eye gp (ophthalmologist) for further tests. They will confirm your diagnosis and find out:

  • endeavor far the condition has developed
  • trade show much damage the glaucoma has done to your eyes
  • what may have caused influence glaucoma

They will then wool able to advise modus operandi treatment. See treating glaucoma for more information.

In some cases, your ophthalmologist will jelly to treat you. On the contrary for less serious types of glaucoma, you can be referred back in front of the opticians.

Page last reviewed: 26 February 2021
Effort review due: 26 Feb 2024