“Pulmonary fibrosis is a lung disease that occurs when lung tissue becomes damaged and scarred. This thickened, stiff tissue makes it harder for the lungs to work properly. Pulmonary fibrosis worsens over time. Some people can stay stable for a long time, but the condition gets worse faster in others. As it gets worse, people become more and more short of breath.”
MAYO CLINIC (Pulmonary fibrosis – Symptoms and causes – Mayo Clinic)
Pulmonary fibrosis is a lung disease that occurs when lung tissue becomes damaged and scarred. This thickened, stiff tissue makes it more difficult for your lungs to work properly. As pulmonary fibrosis worsens, you become progressively more short of breath.
The scarring associated with pulmonary fibrosis can be caused by a multitude of factors. But in most cases, doctors can’t pinpoint what’s causing the problem. When a cause can’t be found, the condition is termed idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.
The lung damage caused by pulmonary fibrosis can’t be repaired, but medications and therapies can sometimes help ease symptoms and improve quality of life. For some people, a lung transplant might be appropriate.
Factors that make you more susceptible to pulmonary fibrosis include:
Pulmonary fibrosis scars and thickens the tissue around and between the air sacs (alveoli) in your lungs. This makes it more difficult for oxygen to pass into your bloodstream. The damage can be caused by many different factors — including long-term exposure to certain toxins, certain medical conditions, radiation therapy and some medications.
Long-term exposure to a number of toxins and pollutants can damage your lungs. These include:
Some people who receive radiation therapy for lung or breast cancer show signs of lung damage months or sometimes years after the initial treatment. The severity of the damage may depend on:
Many drugs can damage your lungs, especially medications such as:
Lung damage can also result from a number of conditions, including:
Many substances and conditions can lead to pulmonary fibrosis. Even so, in most cases, the cause is never found. Pulmonary fibrosis with no known cause is called idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.
Researchers have several theories about what might trigger idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, including viruses and exposure to tobacco smoke. Also, some forms of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis run in families, and heredity may play a role in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.
Many people with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis may also have gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) — a condition that occurs when acid from your stomach flows back into your esophagus. Ongoing research is evaluating if GERD may be a risk factor for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, or if GERD may lead to a more rapid progression of the condition. However, more research is needed to determine the association between idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis and GERD.
“The New Year is often approached with new goals and mindsets, many of which focus on health, including reducing alcohol consumption. The Dry January campaign is one approach to help those who are sober curious or simply interested in cutting back in the new year.
Dry January is a month-long journey to stop drinking. It initially started as a campaign in the UK in 2013 under the organization Alcohol Change UK and quickly caught on worldwide as a growing trend. Since this campaign launched, nearly a quarter of all Americans have participated in Dry January each year.
The World Health Organization warns that no level of alcohol consumption is safe for health, and therefore, abstaining from alcohol is the best way to prevent alcohol-related diseases that can affect your heart, kidneys, brain, and liver. Alcohol consumption is a leading preventable cause of death in the U.S., according to a 2022 study published in JAMA Network Open, and it seems that alcohol consumption in the United States is not stopping or slowing down anytime soon.
According to a 2023 Gallup survey:
62% of Americans consume alcohol
69% of these adults say they last had a drink within the past week. This includes 32% whose most recent drink was in the last 24 hours.
20% of adults in this survey say they drink more than they should
Beer and liquor sales have increased and especially are on the rise during the holiday season in December.
Younger generations drink less, & older generations continue to drink more.”
Alcohol Help (alcohol.com/Dry January 2025: The Ultimate Guide)
Harvard Health Publishing states the following:
“If you’d like to cut down your alcohol consumption or start the new year with a clean slate, join in the Dry January challenge by choosing not to drink beer, wine, or spirits for one month. Dry January began in 2012 as a public health initiative from Alcohol Change UK, a British charity. Now millions take part in this health challenge every year.
While past observational studies suggested a link between drinking a moderate amount of alcohol and health benefits for some people, more recent research has questioned whether any amount of alcohol improves health outcomes. And heavier drinking or long-term drinking can increase physical and mental problems, especially among older adults. Heart and liver damage, a higher cancer risk, a weakened immune system, memory issues, and mood disorders are common issues.
Yet, cutting out alcohol for even a month can make a noticeable difference in your health. Regular drinkers who abstained from alcohol for 30 days slept better, had more energy, and lost weight, according to a study in BMJ Open. They also lowered their blood pressure and cholesterol levels and reduced cancer-related proteins in their blood.
A month may seem like a long time, but most people can be successful. Still, you may need assistance to stay dry in January. Here are some tips:
Sugarman recommends people also use Dry January to reflect on their drinking habits. It’s common for people to lose their alcohol cravings and realize drinking need not occupy such an ample space in their lives. If this is you, consider continuing for another 30 days, or just embrace your new attitude toward drinking where it’s an occasional indulgence.
If you struggle during the month, or give up after a week or so, you may need extra help cutting back. Talk to your doctor about getting the help you need.
The Rethinking Drinking site created by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) is also an excellent resource. For the record, NIAAA recommends limiting alcohol to two daily drinks or less for men and no more than one drink a day for women.
Dry January can reveal signs of potential alcohol problems, including symptoms of alcohol withdrawal ranging from mild to serious, depending on how much you usually drink.
“If you suffer alcohol withdrawal symptoms at any time, you should seek immediate medical help,” says Sugarman.”
“An estimated 4.22 million U.S. adults had glaucoma in 2022, and 1.49 million had vision-affecting glaucoma, with “substantial variation” in prevalence by region and demographics, according to a research study published in JAMA Ophthalmology
“Up-to-date estimates of how many people have glaucoma in a certain area are vital for addressing the problem,” said Joshua Ehrlich, MD, MPH, lead author of the study and associate professor of ophthalmology and visual sciences at Michigan Medicine. “This kind of information is important for formulating evidence-based policy and public health solutions.”
To estimate the prevalence of glaucoma and related vison loss on a state and county level, Ehrich and colleagues conducted a meta-analysis of data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, Medicare and IBM MarketScan claims, population-based studies of eye disease and population estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau.”
Glaucoma Research Foundation (Glaucoma Study Shows Higher Prevalence Than Previous Estimates – Glaucoma Research Foundation Glaucoma.org)
If you are diagnosed with glaucoma, it is important to set a regular schedule of examinations with your eye doctor to monitor your condition and make sure that your prescribed treatment is effectively maintaining a safe eye pressure.
The Treatment of Glaucoma: The damage caused by glaucoma can’t be reversed. But treatment and regular checkups can help slow or prevent vision loss, especially in you catch the disease in its early stage. The goal of glaucoma treatment is to lower pressure in your eye (intraocular pressure). Depending on your situation, your options may include eyedrops, laser treatment or surgery.
Remember The damage caused by glaucoma can’t be reversed. But treatment and regular checkups can help slow or prevent vision loss, especially in you catch the disease in its early stage. The goal of glaucoma treatment is to lower pressure in your eye (intraocular pressure). Depending on your situation, your options may include eyedrops, laser treatment or surgery.
Glaucoma treatment often starts with prescription eyedrops. These can help decrease eye pressure by improving how fluid drains from your eye or by decreasing the amount of fluid your eye makes. Depending on how low your eye pressure needs to be, more than one of the eyedrops below may need to be prescribed.
Prescription eyedrop medications include:
Because some of the eyedrop medicine is absorbed into your bloodstream, you may experience some side effects unrelated to your eyes. To minimize this absorption, close your eyes for one to two minutes after putting the drops in. You may also press lightly at the corner of your eyes near your nose to close the tear duct for one or two minutes. Wipe off any unused drops from your eyelid.
If you have been prescribed multiple eyedrops or you need to use artificial tears, space them out so that you are waiting at least five minutes in between types of drops.
If eyedrops alone don’t bring your eye pressure down to the desired level, your doctor may also prescribe an oral medication, usually a carbonic anhydrase inhibitor. Possible side effects include frequent urination, tingling in the fingers and toes, depression, stomach upset, and kidney stones.
Other treatment options include laser therapy and various surgical procedures. The following techniques are intended to improve the drainage of fluid within the eye, thereby lowering pressure:
After your procedure, you’ll need to see your doctor for follow-up exams. And you may eventually need to undergo additional procedures if your eye pressure begins to rise again or other changes occur in your eye.
“More than 4 million people in the United States have glaucoma and about 35% have related vision loss. Both total glaucoma and vision-affecting glaucoma vary by demographic factors.
Glaucoma is called “the sneak thief of sight” since there are no symptoms and once vision is lost, it’s permanent. As much as 40% of vision can be lost without a person noticing.”
Glaucoma Research Foundation (January Is Glaucoma Awareness Month – Glaucoma Research Foundation)
Secondary Types of Glaucoma:Sometimes glaucoma is caused by another medical condition — this is called secondary glaucoma.
Treatments: Medicines, laser treatment, surgery
Neovascular glaucoma happens when the eye makes extra blood vessels that cover the part of your eye where fluid would normally drain. It’s usually caused by another medical condition, like diabetes or high blood pressure.
If you have neovascular glaucoma, you may notice:
This type of glaucoma can be hard to treat. Doctors need to treat the underlying cause (like diabetes or high blood pressure) and use glaucoma treatments to lower the eye pressure that results from it.
Treatments: Medicines, laser treatment, surgery
Pigment dispersion syndrome happens when the pigment (color) from your iris (the colored part of your eye) flakes off. The loose pigment may block fluid from draining out of your eye, which can increase your eye pressure and cause pigmentary glaucoma.
Young, white men who are near-sighted are more likely to have pigment dispersion syndrome than others. If you have this condition, you may have blurry vision or see rainbow-colored rings around lights, especially when you exercise.
Doctors can treat pigmentary glaucoma by lowering eye pressure, but there currently isn’t a way to prevent pigment from detaching from the iris.
Treatments: Medicines, laser treatment, surgery
Exfoliation glaucoma (sometimes called pseudoexfoliation) is a type of open-angle glaucoma that happens in some people with exfoliation syndrome, a condition that causes extra material to detach from parts of the eye and block fluid from draining.
Recent research shows that genetics may play a role in exfoliation glaucoma. You are at higher risk if someone else in your family has exfoliation glaucoma.
This type of glaucoma can progress faster than primary open-angle glaucoma, and often causes higher eye pressure. This means that it’s especially important for people who are at risk to get eye exams regularly.
Treatments: Medicines, surgery
Uveitic glaucoma can happen in people who have uveitis, a condition that causes inflammation (irritation and swelling) in the eye. About 2 in 10 people with uveitis will develop uveitic glaucoma.
Experts aren’t sure how uveitis causes uveitic glaucoma, but they think that it may happen because uveitis can cause inflammation and scar tissue in the middle of the eye. This may damage or block the part of the eye where fluid drains out, causing high eye pressure and leading to uveitic glaucoma.
In some cases, the medicines that treat uveitis may also cause uveitic glaucoma, or make it worse. This is because corticosteroid medicines may cause increased eye pressure as a side effect.
Treatments: The treatment for steroid-induced glaucoma involves stopping or reducing steroid use. Glaucoma medications can also help lower eye pressure. However, while the increase in eye pressure is treatable, damage to the optic nerve is irreversible.
Steroid-induced glaucoma is open-angle glaucoma caused by prolonged steroid use (longer than 3 weeks). It interferes with the outflow of aqueous humor, gradually increasing eye pressure.
Because the increase in eye pressure is slow, steroid-induced glaucoma is typically asymptomatic. Some people may notice blurry vision as an early warning sign. Eyebrow pain has also been associated with IOP. However, these symptoms only occur if IOP is very high.
Treatments: After an eye injury, your doctor may recommend glaucoma medication, steroids, and antibiotics. These can reduce intraocular pressure -IOP, prevent inflammation, and reduce the risk of infection.
Trauma-induced glaucoma is caused by an eye injury that usually involves blunt trauma or penetrating eye injury. Penetrating and blunt trauma injuries can block your eye’s drainage system, gradually increasing IOP over time.
However, the symptoms of traumatic glaucoma depend on the nature of the injury and how fast IOP increases. For example, glaucoma from a penetrating eye injury may develop after the wound heals. Oftentimes, glaucoma symptoms won’t develop for months or years later.
These self-care steps can help you detect glaucoma in its early stages, which is important in preventing vision loss or slowing its progress.
“Some types of glaucoma are caused by other medical conditions — but for other people, the doctor doesn’t find another condition that causes it. When the doctor doesn’t find another cause, it’s called primary glaucoma.
Sometimes glaucoma is caused by another medical condition — this is called secondary glaucoma.”
National Eye Institute – NIH (Types of Glaucoma | National Eye Institute)
A common eye condition in which the fluid pressure inside the eye rises to a level higher than healthy for that eye. If untreated, it may damage the optic nerve, causing the loss of vision or even blindness. The elderly, African-Americans, and people with family histories of the disease are at greatest risk.
Glaucoma is a multi-factorial, complex eye disease with specific characteristics such as optic nerve damage and visual field loss. While increased pressure inside the eye (called intraocular pressure or IOP) is usually present, even patients with normal range IOP can develop glaucoma.
There is no specific level of elevated eye pressure that definitely leads to glaucoma; conversely, there is no lower level of IOP that will absolutely eliminate a person’s risk of developing glaucoma. That is why early diagnosis and treatment of glaucoma is the key to preventing vision loss.
Eye pressure is measured in millimeters of mercury (mm Hg). Normal eye pressure ranges from 12-22 mm Hg, and eye pressure of greater than 22 mm Hg is considered higher than normal. When the IOP is higher than normal but the person does not show signs of glaucoma, this is referred to as ocular hypertension.
High eye pressure alone does not cause glaucoma. However, it is a significant risk factor. Individuals diagnosed with high eye pressure should have regular comprehensive eye examinations by an eyecare professional to check for signs of the onset of glaucoma.
A person with elevated IOP is referred to as a glaucoma suspect, because of the concern that the elevated eye pressure might lead to glaucoma. The term glaucoma suspect is also used to describe those who have other findings that could potentially, now or in the future, indicate glaucoma. For example, a suspicious optic nerve, or even a strong family history of glaucoma, could put someone in the category of a glaucoma suspect.
Vision loss from glaucoma occurs when the eye pressure is too high for the specific individual and damages the optic nerve. Any resultant damage cannot be reversed. The peripheral (side) vision is usually affected first. The changes in vision may be so gradual that they are not noticed until a lot of vision loss has already occurred.
In time, if the glaucoma is not treated, central vision will also be decreased and then lost; this is how visual impairment from glaucoma is most often noticed. The good news is that glaucoma can be managed if detected early, and with medical and/or surgical treatment, most people with glaucoma will not lose their sight.
Most common signs and symptoms of Glaucoma:
There are several forms of glaucoma; the two most common forms are primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) and angle-closure glaucoma (ACG). Open-angle glaucoma is often called “the sneak thief of sight” because it has no symptoms until significant vision loss has occurred.
Open-angle glaucoma, the most common form of glaucoma, accounting for at least 90% of all glaucoma cases:
“Open-angle” means that the angle where the iris meets the cornea is as wide and open as it should be. Open-angle glaucoma is also called primary or chronic glaucoma. It is the most common type of glaucoma, affecting about three million Americans.
Symptoms of Open-Angle Glaucoma
There are typically no early warning signs or symptoms of open-angle glaucoma. It develops slowly and sometimes without noticeable sight loss for many years.
Most people who have open-angle glaucoma feel fine and do not notice a change in their vision at first because the initial loss of vision is of side or peripheral vision, and the visual acuity or sharpness of vision is maintained until late in the disease.
By the time a patient is aware of vision loss, the disease is usually quite advanced. Vision loss from glaucoma is not reversible with treatment, even with surgery.
Because open-angle glaucoma has few warning signs or symptoms before damage has occurred, it is important to see a doctor for regular eye examinations. If glaucoma is detected during an eye exam, your eye doctor can prescribe a preventative treatment to help protect your vision.
In open-angle glaucoma, the angle in your eye where the iris meets the cornea is as wide and open as it should be, but the eye’s drainage canals become clogged over time, causing an increase in internal eye pressure and subsequent damage to the optic nerve. It is the most common type of glaucoma, affecting about four million Americans, many of whom do not know they have the disease.
You are at increased risk of glaucoma if your parents or siblings have the disease, if you are African-American or Latino, and possibly if you are diabetic or have cardiovascular disease. The risk of glaucoma also increases with age.
Angle-closure glaucoma, a less common form of glaucoma:
It is also called acute glaucoma or narrow-angle glaucoma. Unlike open-angle glaucoma, angle-closure glaucoma is a result of the angle between the iris and cornea closing.
Symptoms of Angle-Closure Glaucoma
Angle-closure glaucoma is caused by blocked drainage canals in the eye, resulting in a sudden rise in intraocular pressure. This is a much more rare form of glaucoma, which develops very quickly and demands immediate medical attention
In contrast with open-angle glaucoma, symptoms of acute angle-closure glaucoma are very noticeable and damage occurs quickly. If you experience any of these symptoms, seek immediate care from an ophthalmologist.
If you are diagnosed with glaucoma, it is important to set a regular schedule of examinations with your eye doctor to monitor your condition and make sure that your prescribed treatment is effectively maintaining a safe eye pressure.
Normal-tension glaucoma is a type of open-angle glaucoma that happens in people with normal eye pressure.
You may be at higher risk for normal-tension glaucoma if you:
Experts don’t know what causes normal-tension glaucoma, but research shows that treatments that lower eye pressure can help slow the disease and stop vision loss.
Medicines, laser treatment, surgery.
Tomorrow stay tune for part II on glaucoma awareness giving other types of glaucoma, how its diagnosed & the risks.