Glaucoma has been called the sneak thief of sight because most people who have the disease are not aware of it. According to the World Health Organization, it is the second leading cause of blindness worldwide.

Since there are only a few warning signs for glaucoma, regular eye exams are important to check for glaucoma and treat it successfully. The first sign of glaucoma is usually the loss of peripheral or side vision.

Under normal conditions, a clear fluid fills the front of your eye and nourishes the tissues. Like the air in a balloon, the fluid also provides pressure to help maintain the shape of the eye.

In most types of glaucoma, the eye's natural drainage system doesn’t work properly, and the fluid inside the eye cannot drain. This increases the pressure in the eye, which can put too much pressure on the optic nerve—the part of the eye that delivers the images you see to the brain, and the result is vision loss.

Vision loss can have a very serious impact on quality of people’s lives. Many people with glaucoma cannot drive a car safely, see their grandkids on the soccer field, or see the world as they did before.

To prevent blindness, it is very important to lower the pressure in the eye. Canaloplasty is a minimally invasive treatment that may be right for you.