Glaucoma is a leading cause of blindness in the United States, especially as we get older.
Many people know that glaucoma has something to do with pressure inside the eye.
In fact, glaucoma is really a disease of the optic nerve and eye pressures are related to damage of this nerve. The optic nerve carries the images we see from the light-sensing retina at the back of the eye to the brain. The optic nerve is like an electric cable containing a million wires. Glaucoma can damage nerve fibers, causing blind spots to develop. People seldom notice these blind areas until considerable optic nerve damage has already occurred.