79% Guyanese have some form of glaucoma – Head of Ophthalmology Dept

On March 6 last, Guyana joined the rest of the world in observing World Glaucoma Week 2022, in order to raise awareness of the ailment under the theme “The world is bright, save your sight.”

As such, the Head of the Ophthalmology Department at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC), Dr Shailendra Sugrim, acknowledged that glaucoma is an important disease that has affected many Guyanese. To that end, he encourages persons to get screened for glaucoma regularly.
“We acknowledge that it is an important disease that we need to screen and test for on a regular basis, because it’s a silent disease. Patients are out there with glaucoma without having this knowledge. The only way that you can pick it up is when you do regular testing,” the doctor said.
Dr Sugrim pointed out that persons who are elderly, of African descent, and have high eye pressure are at high risk of being diagnosed with glaucoma disease.
In addition, he said that it is required that awareness around the silent glaucoma disease is raised. He said, “We join the worldwide community in raising glaucoma awareness, because it’s a blinding disease.”
There has been no formal study done in Guyana to determine the percentage of the population that has been diagnosed with glaucoma, but according to a study done in the Caribbean region, an estimated 79 per cent of Guyanese have some form of glaucoma disease. Open-Angle Glaucoma is the most common type of glaucoma in Guyana.
Though there is no cure for glaucoma, like many other diseases that plague the human body, Dr Sugrim assured that it is very manageable with treatment.
“Glaucoma is like a chronic disease, just like diabetes and hypertension. In the sense that we cannot get rid of hypertension, we cannot get rid of diabetes, we cannot get rid of, or cure, glaucoma, but we can control it very well with treatment.”
Glaucoma is a group of eye conditions that damage the optic nerve, a part of the eye which is vital for good vision. This damage is often caused by abnormally high pressure in the eyes. It is one of the leading causes of blindness for people over the age of 60.
The symptoms of glaucoma are patchy blind spots in your side (peripheral) or central vision, frequently in both eyes, with persons experiencing tunnel vision in the advanced stages.
World Glaucoma Week will conclude on March 11.