Avenue Acupuncture FAQs

Risk factors include elevated eye pressure, age over 60, a family history of glaucoma, physical injury to the eye, other medical conditions such as diabetes or heart disease, certain anatomical factors, and long-term corticosteroid use.

Open-angle glaucoma is the most common type, usually caused by high eye pressure with no initial symptoms. Low/normal tension glaucoma involves optic nerve damage even with normal eye pressure. Angle-closure glaucoma is a medical emergency caused by a sudden increase in eye pressure. Congenital glaucoma is a birth defect affecting fluid drainage, effectively treated with prompt surgery.

Glaucoma is a group of eye diseases involving progressive loss of vision due to damage to the optic nerve, which transmits visual signals to the brain. It is generally associated with higher pressure in the eye, though damage can occur even when eye pressure is normal. Glaucoma is one of the leading causes of blindness in Canada, affecting over 400,000 people.

Insomnia can be caused by adverse reactions to medications (such as corticosteroids, statins, or antidepressants), hormonal changes from menopause, menstruation, or stress, psychological issues like anxiety or depression, and circadian rhythm changes from jet lag or shift work.

Retinitis pigmentosa (RP) is a genetic disorder that causes progressive vision loss and can eventually lead to blindness. It affects the retina, causing loss of peripheral and night vision first, followed by loss of colour and reading vision. RP affects approximately 1 in 5000 people worldwide.

RP is largely hereditary, though about 40% of patients have no known family history. In these cases it may occur as part of another genetic disorder such as Bassen-Kornzweig disease, Kearns-Sayre syndrome, Waardenburg syndrome, Alport syndrome, or Refsum disease.

Effective treatment typically requires 10-20 sessions spaced out over 1-2 weeks, using a combination of Acupuncture, Microacupuncture, AcuNova, and Electro-Acupuncture. The effects of a treatment series generally last 3-6 months before another round is needed.

No. Acupuncture needles do NOT go into the eye. The closest points used are in the eyebrow and cheekbone area, along with points on the hands and feet.

No, this is not a cure. The goal of treatment is to preserve the cells that are still alive and prevent further cells from decaying, which can improve visual field, brightness, and clarity for many patients.

Yes. You can safely receive acupuncture treatments concurrently with your eye injections. In fact, we have had patients who, after undergoing our acupuncture therapies, found they no longer needed their eye injections, as confirmed by their doctors. Just be sure to wait at least a week after your eye injection before scheduling your acupuncture session to allow your eye adequate time to heal.