January is Glaucoma Awareness Month, and unfortunately glaucoma is a leading cause of blindness in the United States. So how much do you know about Glaucoma? Let’s make you more aware about Glaucoma by taking this quiz:
1) Glaucoma tends to run in families. T or F
Answer: True. The more relatives you have with glaucoma, the higher your chances are too. So choose your relatives wisely.
2) Glaucoma is caused by increased eye pressure. T or F
Answer: False. Increased eye pressure means you are at risk for glaucoma, but does not mean you have the disease. A person has glaucoma only if the optic nerve is damaged. If you have increased eye pressure but your nerve has no damage, then you do not have glaucoma.
3) Glaucoma is more common in Afro-Americans than Caucasians. T or F
Answer: True Studies have shown that glaucoma is more than three times as likely to occur in Afro-Americans, and worse yet, it is six times more likely to cause blindness.
4) A person can have glaucoma and not know it. T or F
Answer: True. In only rare circumstances is there pain with glaucoma. Although the nerve is damaged when a person has glaucoma, that nerve only senses light, it does not sense pain. Therefore, the person usually has no warning signs.
If you have read this far and miss #5, I suggest you read #1-4 again.
5) It is perfectly acceptable to go 7 or 8 years without a comprehensive exam. T or F
(A comprehensive eye exam can take from 30 – 60 minutes, in addition to vision testing it includes discussions/education on your vision, eye health and your general health. A comprehensive eye exam cannot be done in 10 minutes. In almost all cases, if the exam is less than 10 minutes it is not a “REAL” exam.)
Answer: False. Just as it is unacceptable for the Steelers/ Pens to go 7-8 years without a championship, comprehensive exams should be done every 1-2 years, for your best chances of detecting the disease before permanent vision loss occurs.
Pittsburgh is due for a championship, are you due for an eye exam?
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