Optic Disk Cupping

[JJ08]

Hi All.

I am 23 and the doctor has told me to see an optician about possible optic nerve cupping. Our family has no history of it.

At the moment my eye sight is perfect. Me right eye is slightly blurred when i close the left eye but with both eyes open my sight is 'perfect'. The doctor picked up on possible cupping after he checked my eyes on a routine check.

I have floaters, and was checked for them when i was 18, but optician said there fine and nothing to worry about. They are not that bad.

What im trying to get at is this. If i have Glaucoma is there a chance i can live a good while without losing vision seen as my eyes are not damaged? I have herd of people that live 40 years+ with it before their condition starts to get bad.

Also is there any other reason for Optic Disk Cupping? Could any of the following cause it?:
- Stress
- Anxiety
- Squint (i have had a bad one from age of 6, i roll my eyes back and squint my eye lids)
- Sitting infront of PC screen for 12 hours + a day (i have been doing this since i was 16)
- Lack of vitamins
- Lack of sleep

Could any of the above cause it? All of which i have listed i have. Could any of these put strain on the eyes?

Im a little worried and need comfort. The doctor said he thinks theres a 99.5% chance i dont have Glucoma, but i cannot find other causes for Optic Disk Cupping on Google.

Cheers.

[John C Hagan III, MD, FACS]

Yes where do you live?  As nancy grace said in the USA an optician makes glasses and that's it.  You need an ophthalmologist a person that has been to medical school and has a MD degree and an additional 3-4 years of training in eye surgery and disease.

Most optic nerves are cupped.  "Some as a normal variation have large cups without glaucoma. They look different than the large cups assocaited with glaucoma. The cup is less than 40% of the diameter of the optic nerve in most people. Anything over 40% needs an Eye MD to look at it to see if special tests for glaucoma are needed.  

Cups are larger in myopic people and is often a famial characteristic

JCH III MD

[AnnaE]

Don't see an optician, don't see an optometrist. See an ophthalmologist, or maybe an MD eye specialist.

The doctors here will tell you which of the last two MDs you need to see.

[JJ08]

The opticians i go to are also ophthalmologists. Its says in their leaflet 'Opticians and Ophthalmologists'

[JJ08]

Also if the doctor was that concerned would he have not passed me onto on MD Eye Specialist? He just said that my regular optician would spot if there was any problems.

[AnnaE]

Where are you? In the US, UK and Canada, an Optician makes eye glasses. They say opt and Ophth because they have both, not because the two are the same. The word Ophthalmologist can mislead in Great Britain, because they have Ophthalmology tecnicians who are really optometrists.

To make it clear, above all, you need an eye MD, a doctor with 4 years of medical school, an internship and a residency in ophthalmology.

[JJ08]

We have a family history of myopic.

I have a lazy eye which is myopic, so do 6 other people in our family.

[JJ08]

Oh i live in the UK

[John C Hagan III, MD, FACS]

Sorry, I am yet to figure out what an "optician" in the UK does. My current understanding is the an optician in UK is an optometrist. If I am mistaken please correct me. Does an UK optician have a MD after their name?

JCH IIIMD

[zelmo]

Might I add that if a glaucoma specialist is available, it would be worthwhile as well. Go as far as you have to to get the most accuate diagnosis as you can. Stay on top of it now and it may be a slight inconvenience. Wait and do nothing like I did, and the results could be worse.

[John C Hagan III, MD, FACS]

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[AnnaE]

Optician in UK  and Canada same as US. In UK they use ophthalmologic tech for optometrist sometimes.

[JJ08]

I want to thank everone for there support and advice.

it turns out i have whats called 'physiological optic disk cupping' and that its perfectly normal and nothing to worry about.

He checked my eyes and said they are healthy and good. I have myopia in my right eye but he said i do not need glasses as it isn't that bad but i can wear them if i want. I chose to have the glasses to use for study.

I asked him if he was qualified and able to check for gluacoma and he said yes, he has diagnosed many people.

So i am so releaved!

Due to the scare and the worries i have been put through the past few days (i was crying for about 6 hours non stop and felt like topping myself) i am going to contribute to the blind community now. I am a web developer and programmer and from this day forward i am putting every effor possible into helping change the internet  so that its suitable for people with vision problems.

I hope one day they find a way to regenerate nerves so that people with gluacoma can have a chance at sight again.

Thank you so much!

[John C Hagan III, MD, FACS]

Glad things worked out well.

JCH III MD