Living with glaucoma is a daily struggle for patients. Glaucoma is a chronic disease that must be treated over the course of one’s life, and high IOP (intraocular eye pressure) must be managed every day. This means using your prescription eye drops daily.
Prescription eye drops are designed to help maintain IOP at a healthy level. However, for them to be effective, they must be used properly. This means following your eye doctor’s orders, using your drops daily (don’t forget!), and, most importantly, applying your eye drops correctly.
Tips for Using Your Prescription Eye Drops
- Wash your hands. Any time you are dealing with the eye it is important to first thoroughly wash your hands.
- Get comfortable: It doesn’t matter if you are sitting, standing, or lying down. Do what feels most comfortable to you.
- Look up. Tilt your head back and gently pull down your lower eyelid.
- Apply the eye drop. Squeeze one drop into the pocket you’ve formed by pulling down your lower eyelid. Be careful not to let the tip of the dropper touch any part of your eye. And don’t blink or wipe your eye.
- Having trouble? If you struggle to get the drops into your eye, try a different approach. Start with your eyes closed. Turn your head to the side and apply a single drop to the corner of your eyelid closest to the bridge of your nose. Then slowly open your eye. The drop should slide right into place.
- Close your eye. Keep your eye closed for two to three minutes, while gently pressing on the inside corner of your closed eye with your index finger and thumb.
- Clean up. Dab excess drops from around your eyes.
- Repeat? If you are applying more than one type of eye drop, wait five minutes in between applications.
Check with your eye doctor if you are having difficulty using your eye drops.
Glaucoma Treatment in Annapolis
The Anne Arundel Eye Center is a regional leader in the diagnosis and treatment of glaucoma and cataracts. Board certified ophthalmologist Dr. Samuel Boles and the eye care specialists at AAEC have helped restore and preserve thousands of patients’ vision. When was your Last Eye Exam?
“I treat my patients the way I want to be treated when I see a doctor,” said Dr. Boles.
When caught early and treated properly, vision loss due to glaucoma can be halted 95% of the time.
If you have any questions Living with Glaucoma or wish to schedule an appointment with Anne Arundel Eye Center, please contact Dr. Boles, Dr. Kathryn Gurganus Turner, and the eye care specialists here at AAEC by calling 410-224-2010 or Click Here to fill out our contact form. You can also follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and YouTube as well!
For more eye care advice and information, please take a look at our previous blog posts.
Sources:
Eye Drop Tips, Glaucoma Research Foundation
My friend has glaucoma and is having trouble applying the drops. I liked what you said about applying the drop while your eyes are closed. I had never heard of this approach, but it seems like it would work. I’ll recommend that he try this out. Thank you!
Since you mentioned that a person with glaucoma has to struggle with intraocular eye pressure every day, it reminded me of my grandma. She has blind spots in her eyes and she wants to know whether she needs special eyedrops to keep her vision clear enough to see her grandchildren. Knowing that one should follow the doctor’s orders when given this as treatment, I will also find one to get her eyes screened. Doing this will not only keep her eyes healthy but be able to appreciate her grandchildren with them as well.