London: Glaucoma affects up to half a million people in the UK and is the second largest cause of unnecessary sight loss.[1]
Around a quarter of a million people dont know they have the condition as glaucoma often doesnt have any symptoms in its early stages.[1] Boots Opticians urges you to have regular sight tests, which are crucial to help detect early signs of the disease.
Dont wait until its too late. To book an eye test at Boots Opticians, call 0845 120 4343 or visit www.bootsopticians.com
Carolyn Zweig, Boots Opticians says: Regular eye tests are a vital health check, which not only test your sight, but they can also detect eye conditions such as glaucoma and age-related macular degeneration, before you notice the effect on your sight. How often you have an eye test depends on your age and the recommendation of your optometrist, but as a general rule, children should be taken for an eye examination by the age of five and eye tests should be taken every two years after that until the age of 70. At 70 and beyond, you should have an eye test every year.
Facts about glaucoma
The first World Glaucoma Day was March 6th 2008
There are four types of glaucoma – the most common is open angle or chronic glaucoma
Chronic glaucoma causes gradual blockage of the eyes drainage tubes leading to a build-up of pressure which damages the optic nerves
50 per cent of glaucoma sufferers go undiagnosed in developed countries[2]
Up to 95 per cent of glaucoma sufferers go undiagnosed in the developing world [2]
Around two in every 100 people over 40 in the UK have glaucoma [3] which equates to approximately 600,000 people
[1] RNIB.org.uk
[2] World Glaucoma Association
3 NHS
4 Based on figures from The Office of National Statistics
5 The College Of Optometrists