Dr Alastair Lockwood, ophthalmologist and eye health specialist at Feel Good Contacts, warns that “serious and irreversible” eye conditions like glaucoma have gone undetected amid missed routine eye check-ups. What’s worse, if you leave glaucoma untreated, it can lead to loss of vision.
“It is where the optic nerve (the electrical cable that carries information from your eye to your brain) degenerates more quickly than it should.”
This usually happens because of the high pressure induced by the fluid in your eye.
He continued: “Our brains are able to compensate for the natural degeneration so we have little awareness of disease progression.
“However, this means there are often no symptoms until the disease is very advanced, and we cannot, yet, rejuvenate a human optic nerve.”
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He noted that this is caused by the rise in the pressure.
Furthermore, many people might not realise they suffer from this condition unless they get tested.
Dr Lockwood said: “Which is why regular eye checks are so important.
“The general recommendation is to visit your optician at least every two years for an examination for a full health check with a prescription review, and at least yearly if there are added risk factors, for example, a family history.”
Am I at a higher risk of developing glaucoma?
The eye health specialist shared people that are more at risk of developing the disease include those who:
- Have a family history of glaucoma
- Are over 40 years of age
- Are short-sighted or long-sighted
- Have hypertension (high blood pressure)
- Have diabetes.
He added: “Unfortunately, there is little that one can do to reduce the risk of developing glaucoma.
“So, I am urging patients not to neglect their eye health.
“The key to avoiding glaucoma progression is to have regular eye checks which crucially include eye pressure measurement, optic nerve examination and a field test (the ability to see things out of the corner of your eye).”
