Health Tip: Using Glaucoma Eye Drops

Eye drops are a popular way to treat glaucoma, a group of diseases that, if untreated, can damage the optic nerve and lead to blindness.

To be safe and effective, however, these eye drops must be used as prescribed by a doctor.

The U.S. National Eye Institute offers these suggestions:

Wash yourhands before use.
Hold the bottle of drops upsidedown and tilt your headback.
With the hand that isn’t holding the medicine, pull down your lower eyelid to form apocket.
Squeeze the bottle gently to place a drop into the lower eyelid. If you’ve been prescribed more than one drop per eye, wait at least 5 minutes before applying the secondset of drops.
Close your eye or press the lower lid lightly with your finger for at least one minute. This will keep the medicine in the eye and prevent it from draining into the tear duct.

Source: HealthDay