New app developed for glaucoma patients

A glaucoma patient app has been developed by City University London to educate people who have been newly diagnosed with the condition.

Researchers at the university developed the resource, with support from Allergan Pharmaceuticals, to help people better understand the impact of glaucoma.

The app was one part of its ‘Glaucoma in Perspective’ programme also aimed at wider healthcare professionals.

What made glaucoma dangerous, the researchers said, was that early vision loss can go undetected and, as glaucoma worsens, compensatory perceptive mechanisms can unravel leading to noticeable sight loss and in some cases blindness.

David Crabb, professor of statistics and vision research at City University London, said: ‘If you have glaucoma, or someone you know has glaucoma, this app has been developed for you. By working in partnership with Allergan we hope we can help raise awareness of glaucoma and explain why people invariably have no symptoms in the early stages of the disease.