Glaucoma Center and
Clinical Research Center
Glaucoma Research Center Louisville
Glaucoma is a word that has been used by many people to mean many different things. As a consequence, there is a great deal of confusion about what it is. Originally glaucoma referred to a condition in which an eye become rock hard and painful and the patient usually lost vision. We now know that this was probably Angle Closure Glaucoma. In these patients it was noticed that the optic nerve had a characteristic appearance after the attack. Later, patients were recognized who lost vision, and whose optic nerves developed a similar appearance, but whom never experienced the episode of very high pressure. These are what we now know as Open Angle Glaucoma. Over the years, as we have come to understand that high pressure can cause the vision loss of glaucoma, conditions where the pressure is high or even conditions where the pressure might become high have been called glaucoma. Finally, it has been seen that some patients lose vision without ever having high pressures and these are called glaucoma as well.
When thinking of glaucoma it is advisable to think of two separate things: the damage the occurs to the optic nerve which seems to be related to pressure and those things that may cause the pressure to rise high enough to cause damage to the optic nerve. When either of these conditions are present treatment may be advisable.
Dr. Williams is the founder and director of both the Glaucoma Center and the Clinical Research Center at the Taustine Eye Center. After practicing general ophthalmology for more than a decade he returned to the University of Louisville in 1991 to serve a fellowship in glaucoma. There he studied the latest techniques for diagnosing and treating glaucoma and participated in research into the treatment of glaucoma. For the last decade his practice has been limited to the care of people with glaucoma.
Dr. Williams feels that glaucoma therapy must be tailored to the individual. Therapy must take into account the lifestyle, needs and desires of the patients. He encourages the active participation of patients in designing a treatment regimen that suits them while insuring that they protect their vision from damage.
For Clinical Trial information- Call Mary Beth at
(502) 458-0728, ext. 5
The
Medical Arts Building
1169 Eastern Parkway, Suite 3334
Louisville, KY 40217
(502) 458-9004
