Glaucoma Awareness Week. Glaucoma has no early symptoms.
Glaucoma Awareness Week runs from 6 to 12 July. It’s a national campaign led by Glaucoma UK, and it exists for one simple reason. Around 1.1 million people in the UK are living with glaucoma right now, and roughly half of them have no idea.
That’s not because they’re ignoring symptoms. It’s because, in its early stages, glaucoma usually has none and our experienced and friendly opticians have seen this over and over again with patients who simply had no idea.
So what actually is glaucoma?
It’s the name for a group of eye conditions that damage the optic nerve, the cable that carries everything your eye sees to your brain. In most cases, the damage is linked to a build-up of pressure inside the eye.
Your eye constantly produces fluid, which normally drains away through tiny channels. If that drainage slows or blocks, pressure rises, and over time it damages the nerve fibres at the back of your eye. Once those fibres are gone, they don’t grow back. Any sight lost to glaucoma is lost for good.
Why you won’t notice it
Glaucoma is often called the silent thief of sight, and it earns the name. It typically starts at the edges of your vision, so slowly and so gradually that your brain quietly fills in the gaps. There’s no pain, no redness, no blurring in the early stages. Nothing to prompt you to pick up the phone.
People often imagine glaucoma as looking through a dark tunnel. In reality, most people describe subtle misty or missing patches, and often only in one eye, which the other eye covers for. You can lose a significant amount of vision before you notice anything at all.
By the time glaucoma becomes obvious on its own, real damage has usually been done.
That’s why waiting for symptoms simply doesn’t work with this condition.
Who’s most at risk?
Anyone can develop glaucoma, but some people should be extra vigilant:
- Family history. If a parent, brother or sister has glaucoma, your own risk is at least four times higher. If glaucoma runs in your family, regular eye tests aren’t optional extras. They matter.
- Age. Glaucoma becomes more common as we get older, particularly over 40.
- Ethnicity. People of African, Caribbean or Asian heritage carry a higher risk, and often at a younger age.
- Other health conditions. Diabetes and very short-sighted or long-sighted prescriptions can increase risk too.
If any of those apply to you, this week is a very good time to check when your last eye test was.
The eye test
Here’s the part we really want you to take away. A routine eye test is the single best defence against glaucoma. Not a special appointment. Not a hospital referral.
The same eye test we’d encourage you to have every two years anyway.
During your examination at Coleman Opticians we check the pressure inside your eyes, examine the health of your optic nerve, and assess your field of vision. Our OCT scanner takes a detailed, layer-by-layer image of the back of your eye, which means we can spot the earliest signs of change, often years before you’d notice anything yourself.
It’s quick, it’s comfortable, and it could genuinely save your sight.
On a positive note
The good news is that when glaucoma is caught early, treatment is straightforward and very effective. It is often caused by a build-up of fluid in the eye called aqueous humour, or just aqueous.
This causes pressure in the eye (called intraocular pressure or IOP) to increase, which damages the optic nerve and leads to vision loss.
Eye drops are the most common treatment for glaucoma. They decrease the amount of fluid in the eye, either by increasing the drainage of fluid out of the eye, or by reducing the amount of fluid that is made.
What do eye drops do?
There are lots of different eye drops to treat glaucoma. They work in different ways, but they all reduce the amount of fluid in your eye. This reduces IOP, and so reduces damage to the optic nerve.
The different drops fall into five main categories, which work in slightly different ways: Alpha agonist, Beta blockers, Carbonic anhydrase inhibitors, Cholinergic agonists and Prostaglandin analogues.
Selective laser trabeculoplasty (SLT) and argon laser trabeculoplasty (ALT)
SLT and ALT are used to treat open angle glaucoma or ocular hypertension. The laser is targets the drainage channel in the eye, opening it up so that fluid can drain out.
This lowers IOP, which reduces the risk of damage to the optic nerve.
The treatment is done in a normal eye clinic not an operating theatre, and usually lasts around 20 minutes. You will be given a local anaesthetic to numb the eye and you’ll probably be given eye drops to use afterwards to reduce swelling.
SLT and ALT are two options. SLT is the latest form of treatment, which uses a laser that is shown to be more gentle.
One thing to do this week
If it’s been more than two years since your last eye test, book one.
If glaucoma runs in your family, tell your relatives and encourage them to book too. It’s one of those conversations that feels awkward for about ten seconds and could protect someone’s vision for decades.
You’ll find us in Norwich, and we’re always happy to talk through any concerns about your eye health, whether it’s Glaucoma Awareness Week or any other week of the year.
Call us or book your eye test online today. Your future self will thank you.
