06/06/2022
Are there any symptoms of glaucoma?
Glaucoma, known as the "silent vision thief," is usually painless and progressive vision loss that may not produce any symptoms.
Usually in the early stages of the disease, central vision is relatively less affected than peripheral vision; as the disease progresses, central vision is more severely affected. Glaucoma patients may notice that they cannot see objects to their side due to the loss of peripheral vision, and most patients do not notice any symptoms until advanced stages. At times, patients may notice or describe their vision becoming hazy.
Angle-closure glaucoma may be associated with redness and pain in the eye, headache, blurred vision, and seeing a colored halo around the light bulb – acute angle-closure attacks are associated with fairly high intraocular pressure levels (above 40mmHg). However, most cases of angle-closure glaucoma develop asymptomatically, because obstruction of the drainage ducts and increased intraocular pressure tend to occur in a slow and gradual manner.
Non-specific visual symptoms can also be associated with glaucoma, such as cloudy/blooming vision, glare, or needing more light to read.
