In 1862, Donders discovered that high intraocular pressure caused blindness and called the disease "Glaukoma simplex." Further progress in the diagnosis of glaucoma was made by the invention of the tonometer and the perimeter, and the use of cocain.

Where did glaucoma come from?

Glaucoma is the result of damage to the optic nerve. As this nerve gradually deteriorates, blind spots develop in your visual field. For reasons that doctors don't fully understand, this nerve damage is usually related to increased pressure in the eye.

When were glaucoma drops invented?

Eserine (physostigmine) was the first glaucoma drug, a cholinergic agonist dating from 1876. Derived from the West African calabar bean, which caused pupils to become smaller, it was initially used for miosis in iridectomy cases, then found to lower IOP and break angle-closure attacks.