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We are three days into World Glaucoma Week (WGW) which ends on Saturday 14th March 2020. In support of government efforts to raise awareness of this eye disease the City is encouraging residents to go have their eyes tested at an optician or government clinic that offers this service.
The eyes give sight which allows us to see the beauty of life, where we are going, what we are doing, help make decisions and so much more. The eyes need to be protected and cared for and WGW is a global initiative between the World Glaucoma Association and the World Glaucoma Patient Association to create greater awareness of glaucoma.
Glaucoma is a group of eye diseases that cause progressive damage of the optic nerve at the point where it leaves the eye to carry visual information to the brain. Glaucoma is the second most common cause of blindness worldwide. It is estimated that 4.5 million persons globally are blind due to glaucoma1 and that this number will rise to 11.2 million in 2020.
If left untreated, most types of glaucoma progress (without warning nor obvious symptoms to the patient) towards gradually worsening visual damage and may lead to blindness.
There is no cure for glaucoma as yet and vision loss is irreversible. However medication or surgery (traditional or laser) can halt or slow-down any further vision loss. Therefore early detection is essential to limiting visual impairment and preventing the progression towards severe visual handicap or blindness. Eye-care professionals can detect glaucoma in its early stages and advise you on the best course of action.
Some forms of glaucoma may occur at birth ("congenital") or during infancy and childhood ("juvenile"); in most cases however, glaucoma appears after 40 years of age and its frequency increases with age. There is no clearly established difference in glaucoma incidence between men and women. https://www.gov.za/WorldGlaucomaWeek2020
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