Vision is an important sensory function for all of us and in order to maintain a good vision we have to take good care of our eyes. The eyes are active right from birth and perform a very energy intensive task of proving the sense of vision. With ageing, various diseases can impact the body and eyes. Thus, it is recommended that every individual have a routine eye evaluation by the age of 45. We reached out to Dr Digvijay Singh, Director, Noble Eye Care, Gurugram to know what mandatory eye tests should people take in their late forties.
The top three causes for permanent vision loss are glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy and age related macular degeneration. All of these generally manifest beyond the age of 40. It is important to get tested for these three as you age.
Glaucoma Test
Glaucoma is a disease where an increased pressure in the eye causes damage to the optic nerve resulting in irreversible vision loss. Unfortunately, glaucoma is a silent disease and in most individuals will not cause any symptoms till it has affected more than 50% of the vision, shares Dr Singh.
In this condition, vision starts to get lost from the periphery and keeps getting lost towards the centre. Risk factors of glaucoma include:
- presence of diabetes mellitus
- hypertension and heart disease
- Steroids abuse
- having a high power or a family member with glaucoma.
A regular checkup at 40-45 years of age and annually thereafter can help identify this silent thief of sight before it causes any damage.
Also Read: How To Prevent Glaucoma Related Blindness With Timely Detection & Management
Eye Test For Diabetes Mellitus
Diabetes Mellitus is a growing epidemic and is affecting the younger demographic much more than in the previous decades. As per Dr Singh, “We are seeing many more cases of diabetic retinopathy and more severe ones too.”
“With the current improvement in medical therapy and early diagnosis of diabetes, it is imperative to have an eye checkup for all diabetics at the age of 40 or within 1 year of getting diagnosed with diabetes,” he adds.
Management of diabetic retinopathy is easiest in the early stages where basic lifestyle measures and sugar control can reverse the diseases. In severe cases sometimes vision can’t be recovered even with the best of therapy.
Also Read: Are You Suffering From Chronic Watering In One Or Both Eyes? It Could Be Dacryocystitis
Age Related Macular Degeneration Test
Age related macular degeneration causes loss of central vision which leads to severe visual disability. As its name suggests, this is a disease of ageing and is typically seen in patients above the age of 50 years. However with increasing life stress and exposure to screen radiation we are seeing this condition a decade earlier in the forties
Early diagnosis and treatment can prevent progress of this disease.
Dr Singh recommends that everyone should undergo an eye exam in their 40’s and more so if they have any systemic disease such as diabetes mellitus, hypertension, cardiac disease or they are smokers or they have family history of eye diseases or use high powered glasses.
Summing up, it has become imperative that everyone undergo annual eye checkup to timely diagnose conditions and seek treatment considering the increase in eye problems.
