Rate of Blindness Caused by Glaucoma
Decreasing
Glaucoma
affects more than 2.7 million people in the United States and over 60 million
globally. Although the disease is a leading cause of blindness worldwide, the
probability of going blind from glaucoma has been significantly reduced due to
advances in diagnosis and treatment. In office use of optical coherence
tomography (OCT) to study and measure the nerve fiber layer of the retina and
optic nerve as well lasers and implantable microscopic devices to change the
risk of blindness from glaucoma. Researchers from Mayo Clinic College of
Medicine studied the change in the rate of blindness from glaucoma over 2
consecutive 20 year periods and found that the rate of blindness was decreased
by half but still remained unacceptably high! The best ways to avoid vision loss
from glaucoma are to know your risk factors-such as family history, African and
Hispanic descent, smoking, diabetes and sleep apnea, and be sure to schedule
regular eye exams with glaucoma testing within timeframes recommended by your
eye doctor.
If
you or someone you now is concerned about their risk of glaucoma, schedule an
eye exam at Center for Sight 508-730-2020, visit Center for Sight, Google or www.facebook.com/centerforsightfallriver to schedule an appointment.
Center for Sight is conveniently located
at 1565
North Main Street, Suite 406, Fall River, Massachusetts 02720 for patients from
Massachusetts or Rhode Island.
