{"id":5571,"date":"2017-01-02T05:48:12","date_gmt":"2017-01-02T13:48:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.medicaleyecenter.com\/?p=5571"},"modified":"2017-01-02T05:48:12","modified_gmt":"2017-01-02T13:48:12","slug":"glaucoma-high-blood-pressure","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.medicaleyecenter.com\/2017\/01\/02\/glaucoma-high-blood-pressure\/","title":{"rendered":"Glaucoma and High Blood Pressure"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"To understand the connection between glaucoma and high blood pressure, it\u2019s important to find out what these two conditions are. Glaucoma<\/a> is a type of progressive eye disease in which optic nerve cells are damaged by excess fluid pressure in the eye. It’s the second leading cause of blindness in North America, behind diabetes. Containing more than a million nerve fibers, the\u00a0optic nerve\u00a0connects the eye to the brain. This important nerve is responsible for carrying images to the brain. The optic nerve fibers make up a part of the retina that provides sight. This nerve fiber layer can be damaged if pressure in the eye (intraocular pressure) becomes too high. Over time, high pressure causes the nerve fibers to die, resulting in decreased vision. Vision loss and blindness will likely result if glaucoma is left untreated. Researchers feel that some types of glaucoma may be the result of not having good blood flow to the optic nerve.<\/p>\n

Hypertension and Blood Vessel Damage<\/h2>\n

High blood pressure, also called hypertension, can cause our normally elastic blood vessels to become firm. When blood vessels\u00a0harden, they cause blood pressure to increase, which tends to accelerate\u00a0atherosclerosis (plaque formation in the walls of the arteries).<\/p>\n

Atherosclerosis often leads to blood vessel obstruction, and can produce\u00a0heart attacks, strokes and other serious problems.\u00a0Furthermore, blood vessels may become weak over time from high blood pressure, and weak areas can develop. These weak areas in the blood vessels collect blood and become aneurysms. Aneurysms can burst and leak blood, causing damage to organs.<\/p>\n

High Blood Pressure and Glaucoma<\/h2>\n

It was once thought that a little high blood pressure could be good for glaucoma. Having high blood pressure ensures that there is good blood flow to the nerve tissues of the eye. However, according to new studies,\u00a0long term high blood pressure increases one\u2019s risk for developing glaucoma. Other studies have shown that having high blood pressure may be a risk factor for glaucoma. It seems that hypertension might damage the blood vessels in the eye so that they can’t compensate for changes in blood flow when eye pressure increases.<\/p>\n

For more information about glaucoma and high blood pressure, contact Medical Eye Center\u00a0at 800-824-2688\u00a0or www.medicaleyecenter.com<\/a>. Optimal eye health is a top priority to our doctors<\/a>\u00a0in Medford.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

To understand the connection between glaucoma and high blood pressure, it\u2019s important to find out what these two conditions are. Glaucoma is a type of progressive eye disease in which optic nerve cells are damaged by excess fluid pressure in the eye. It’s the second leading cause of blindness in North America, behind diabetes. Containing … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/path><\/svg><\/span><\/a><\/path><\/svg><\/span><\/a><\/path><\/svg><\/span><\/a><\/svg><\/span><\/a><\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_wp_rev_ctl_limit":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nMedical Eye Center | Glaucoma and High Blood Pressure | Medford<\/title>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n