From the High St: Staying in the spotlight

Glaucoma is a huge issue. We all know there is an ageing population that is bringing a tsunami of glaucoma to the doors of ophthalmology and optometry. There will be many long-term ramifications of this on other services as well as wider health and social care implications.  

Of course, 50% of all cases are undiagnosed. The disease is typically insidious at its onset and asymptomatic. Couple this with the reality that as many as one in four people in the UK don’t access regular eye care, it is a serious yet complex issue to solve. A solution would be to ensure that everyone receives regular sight tests. This is another hugely complex issue. In Scotland, where sight tests are free, the uptake is not comparable to that seen elsewhere in the UK, so the barriers are not simply cost-based.