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Glaucoma eye drops long term side effects

Hi l am 47 have glaucoma , there is some nerve damage but l can still see fairly well and my specialist says its early stage glaucoma. l have been taking azarga eye drops twice a day for ten years and only noticeable side effect was some minor dry eye which l take lubricating eye drops. was wondering if l keep taking azarga for another ten or twenty years could the eye drops themselves cause any long term serious eye problems that could affect my vision ? What is the safest glaucoma eye drop with least side effects  to take long term or are they all pity much all safe. l have noticed in recent years my vision does'nt seem as sharp when reading words on signs in the distance, l can still read the words but slightly blurry compared to when l was younger, could that be caused by glacoma or the eye drops or just vision not as sharp when get older
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233488 tn?1310693103
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Your eye drop contains two medicines: bromonidine whose most common side effect is redness and irritation and timolol.  That medicine is a beta blocker and must be watched carefully for side effects. The most common are wheezing, chronic post nasal discharge, low blood pressure, slow pulse, decreased exercise tolerance.    Glaucoma affects the peripheral vision not the central vision. If you are not seeing as clear it likely is either a glasses problem, cataracts or macular degeneration. You should discuss with your ophthalmologist.
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it does'nt give me any of those side effects you mentioned , only dry eyes.  Are there any long term side effects that can harm your eyes or vision from azarga or is that highly unlikley
I mentioned the most important. Read the package insert next time you get a new bottle. Patients have been on that medicine for 20-40 years without side effects, while others develop them in just a few weeks. It is that way with most medications.
hi . ; saw my specialsit today, He said l have cateracts in both eyes, that explained why the right eye words seemed slighly blurry, l feel pity depressed now l have both glaucoma and cateracts . But he said my glacuoma is under control and overall l can still see failry well , l dont have any problems reading writing or doing anything and  l dont need contacts or glasses. he said its age related cataracts,  but l am 47, and he said  it started about a year ago . . l feel a bit scared of surgery . l read some people whoi are first diagnosed with cateracts it does;nt get bad untill they are in their 60's and they dont need surgery then, do you think l can delay surgery for a while , maybe ten years or does ir progress faster then that
47 is definitely young for cataracts. Often there are risk factors for young age cataracts: obesity, heavy smoking, heaving alcohol use, heavy sun exposure, + family history of cataracts at young age,  prolonged steroid use.  Glaucoma is NOT one of them. If you have any of those risk factors treat them to slow the cataract down and live healthier.
thanks, yes he said its early stage or  mild cataracts. l was'nt expecting it until alot older.  l dont drink or smoke or take steroids , but sun and obesitiy may be a factors l can treat .  My vision is good except with my right eye reading words on signs in the distance can be slighly blury , l can still read, drive and do things and not notice anything wrong. Does it progress slowly and perhaps avoid surgery for another ten years or more? Are there cases of people diagnosed with cataracts in the 40's and done need surgery until their 60's?
cataracts are like teenagers. You never know what they are going to do. Generally cataracts at your age grow faster than normal. No way to predict when they could be bad enough to consider surgery.
My hope is maybe it will be slow and wont get bad for ten years as my vision is still good at the moment Are there cases where they stop growing or is it almost certain they will get worse, is it something that can be fixed with a safe simple operation and therefore not something l need to worry too much about, is there one form of surgery thats better then others such as laser, will be vision be as good after the operation. l dont need glasses or contacts now , would l need them after the operation
Most likely it will be a long time before you need cataract surgery.  That surgery is among the most common and most successful done on adults. Cat surgery helps glaucoma by lowering the eye pressure. Don't stress over it.
thanks one last question, He said the cataracts started around 6 months ago, that was only a few months after l had SLT laser for glaucoma, is there any chance the SLT laser caused the cataracts or would that be not possible
No the SLT does not deliver heat and the treated spot is over the drainage area not the lens.
Are there any reported cases of SLT laser causing cataract?, is there a risk the surgeon could have missed and  hit the lens or is that impossible for a qualified experienced surgeon ? Just seems a coincidence l get a cataract in the same eye l had SLT laser a few months later and at age of 47 when few people get cataract
I did a quick search and did not find reports in reputable medical journals. I personally don't know of any. It is not a risk I discuss when I do SLT.  You can always see a different ophthalmologist and get a second opinion.  I saw a healthy 51 year old with cataracts this week.  It is likely you have or will get a cataract in the other eye in the future, unless your present cataract is due to an injury you had in the past. Some people forget significant eye trauma (black eye, hit with fist/ball, etc)
A few years ago a falling tree branch hit my nose and almost broke it, it did'nt hit my eyes but there was lots of bleeding and as a result   l got two black eyes, dont know if that could have caused it
No way to tell. Usually it takes a direct blow to the eye
hi just to update , l went to another specialist, he said theres cataracts in both eyes, l guess that means it was 'nt the SLT laser that caused it as l only had the laser in one eye. He said my vision is 20/20 and l passed the  peripheral vision test . l just hope the cataracts are slow to progress and l dont need surgery for years, is there anyway to slow progression down such as wearing sunlgasses outdoors all the time
So I was correct that you have cataracts in both eyes and it was not the SLT that caused them. Sunglasses all the time are not necessary.  We have gone over this before with cataract prevention/slow growth:  don't smoke or use nicotine, cannabis,  do not drink alcohol or no more than one drink/day, don't get obese, eat a good diet, when outdoors in bright sunlight wear a hat with a bill, if you wear glasses get a UV blocking coat on them, don't use over the counter steroid products (like Flonase).
Hi , a technical question, l read the lens of the eye relies on aqueous humor liquid to get the nurtients and oxygen it needs and to remove the waste , it it possible the azarga eye drops l take for glaucoma that reduce the liquid in the eye resulted in the lens not getting enough liquid , could the azarga l take now make my cataract worse or is that not possible
No
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