; Glaucoma Awareness Month

Sunday, January 5, 2014

Greater Glaucoma Awareness Needed for Seniors & Over 40 Adults


Seniors and those people transcending their 40’s, 50’s and 60’s should take heed to build a solid understanding of glaucoma, glaucoma risk factors and the  need to have regular eye exams with glaucoma evaluation as during these decades the  risk of glaucoma accelerates with the  aging process. Additional risk factors to be sensitive to include any family history of glaucoma-especially among siblings, diabetes and other vascular or circulatory disease. Patients should be particularly sensitive to the fact that in African-American and Hispanic populations, glaucoma is the leading cause of blindness.

Prevent Blindness America has designated January as National Glaucoma Awareness Month. Almost 3 million people age 40 and older have open-angle glaucoma, which reflects a considerable increase over the past 10 years. While there is cure for glaucoma, we know that the key step in preventing vision loss from glaucoma is early detection, diagnosis and treatment. This is why we want raise awareness about the importance of regular eye examinations to preserve vision especially for our aging population. We strongly recommend that siblings of glaucoma patients be screened each and every year as their risk of developing glaucoma is some 5 times higher than the typical population.
 
If you or someone you know has a question about glaucoma, glaucoma risk factors and glaucoma eye exams, please feel free to call Northwest Indiana Eye & Laser Center at 219-464-8223, or visit Northwest Indiana Eye & Laser Center or facebook.com/nwindianaeyeandlaser. 

Northwest Indiana Eye & Laser Center offices are located at 522 Marquette Street, Valparaiso, Indiana 46383 and 1001 South Edgewood Drive, Knox, Indiana 46354.

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