October is not only the month of turning leaves, crisp afternoons and fall festivals, it is also a month dedicated to raising awareness for people who are blind and have low vision.
Eye Care America offers some sobering statistics about blindness:
• One in three Americans will have some form of a vision impairing eye disease by the age of 65.
• People with diabetes are 25 times more likely to become blind than people without diabetes.
• Nearly three million people have glaucoma, but half do not realize it because there are often no warning symptoms.
According to a recent study of 1,000 adults on medicine.net, 47% of them are more worried about losing their sight than their ability to walk or hear, yet 30% do not get their eyes checked. Because these statistics are so shocking, we would like to provide you with some useful information and resources to help you become more aware and get you thinking about your eyes, let’s take a look at some of the most common eye diseases and conditions.
Glaucoma
• Definition: a disease that refers a group of eye diseases affecting the optic nerve causing potential damage and vision loss.
• Those at greatest risk: The elderly, African-Americans, and people with family histories of the disease
• Preventative Measures: There are no symptoms of Glaucoma in the early stages, by the time a patient experiences vision loss, treatment can halt the progress but not reverse it.
• Treatment: Eye drops, lasers and in some cases, surgery are all affective means in which a patient can cope with Glaucoma.
• Glaucoma Simulator
Cataracts
• Definition: painless condition in which the normally clear lens of the eye becomes cloudy.
• Those at greatest risk: everyone! Cataracts will affect most everyone if they live long enough.
• Preventative Measures: diagnosis can be made with a doctor examination
• Treatment: Eyeglasses, brighter lighting, antiglare sunglasses and magnifying lenses can all help patients living with cataracts to see more clearly. If these efforts fail, a surgical procedure removing the cloudy lens and replacing it with an artificial one, is the only way to cure the condition.
Age Related Macular Degeneration (AMD)
• Definition: a condition that occurs typically after the age of 60 that destroys the macula, the central part of the retina, inhibiting central vision. (It rarely causes blindness because it only affects central vision.)
• Those at greatest risk: everyone!
• Preventative Measures: regular eye exams
• Treatment: early stages of AMD can be treated with high-dose formulations of anti-oxidants, other treatments include lasers, surgery and eye injections; however, in the more advanced stages, vision loss cannot be restored.
There are many more eye conditions worth noting. Click here for more information about eye diseases and conditions.
Blindness awareness month goes beyond the month of October. Remember that vision loss can happen to anyone: parents, neighbors, teachers, friends. By increasing your awareness about blindness, you are making a choice to realize that not everyone leads a “typical life” and there is nothing wrong with that.