chronic glaucoma Chronic (Primary Open-Angle) Glaucoma Eye doctors do not like to begin therapy prematurely in individuals identified as at risk for chronic glaucoma, also known as Open Angle Glaucoma.  Patients considered "pre-glaucoma" should have your eyes examined as often as your eye doctor thinks is necessary. Increasingly frequent dosages of medications may be needed as the eye develops tolerance to the medicine. Drug therapy can effectively thwart the progress of glaucoma, but it can mean taking an escalating variety of eye drops and pills, with various side effects, for life. Topical medications for chronic glaucoma are serious medicine, not to be confused with over-the-counter eye drops for easing common eye irritations. One of the most popular maintenance eye drops, Timoptic (timolol maleate), may have side effects on the nerves, digestion, vision, skin, respiration, and the heart of some individuals. Timoptic is a beta-blocker type of eye drop. Taken usually twice  a day, beta blockers decrease production of aqueous humor. Side effects may include lowered pulse rate and blood pressure, exacerbated asthma, and fatigue. Timoptic's century-old predecessor, pilocarpine, requires more frequent use to do its job, increasing drainage of aqueous fluid in both open and closed angle glaucomas. Pilocarpine is a miotic, designed to increase aqueous fluid drainage. Because miotics work by making the pupil smaller, they can result in dim vision and may increase the risk of cataracts. Diamox carbonic anhydrase inhibitor tablets, like beta blockers, decrease production of aqueous fluid, but these drugs seem to provoke more prominent side effects in some people, including mental depression, kidney stones, tingling in the hands and feet, and sometimes anemia. These are rough side effects for people already suffering from the problems of chronic glaucoma. Since reactions to medications vary so much from person to person, a drug that causes one individual problems that may be easily tolerated by another. An appropriate drug regimen, therefore, needs to be worked out carefully between patient and eye doctor. Glaucoma medications are potent drugs. Those who take them should consult a pharmacist to be certain that they won't interact adversely with any other prescriptions or over-the-counter drugs being taken. For example, some over-the-counter products, including decongestants, may not be suited for people at risk of chronic glaucoma.