Question:
I have just been diagnosed with pigmentary glaucoma in my left eye. The pressure is 26. My father went blind in one eye and had greatly decreased vision in the other eye because of glaucoma, when he died in 1990. He also had hypothyroid disease. I was diagnosed with hyperthyroid disease in 1981. What relationship, if any, does my current thyroid condition/treatment contribute to my glaucoma? I have also read that some autoimmune diseases have a relationship to glaucoma and I have inherited vitiligo from my mother. Is there any connection between the vitiligo and glaucoma?
Answer:
Pigmentary glaucoma can run in families as an autosomal dominant trait. As such, it can occur, to varying degrees, in 50% of the offspring of an individual with this condition. There is no proven relationship between autoimmune disease, including thyroid disease, and pigmentary glaucoma. However, autoimmune disease, including vitiligo, has been implicated as a risk factor for or may be seen in association with other types of glaucoma.
Answered by:
Louis B. Cantor, MD
Categories:
Eye Conditions; Eye Diseases
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