Glaucoma Awareness Week (6–12 July 2026) shines a light on one of the most serious yet commonly overlooked eye conditions in Ireland. Glaucoma is the leading cause of irreversible blindness worldwide. Because it typically develops without pain or obvious symptoms, many people lose significant vision before they ever realise there is a problem.
The good news is that when glaucoma is detected early through regular comprehensive eye examinations, sight loss can usually be prevented or significantly slowed. Glaucoma Awareness Week is about raising awareness of the condition, helping people understand their individual risk, and encouraging everyone to take the simple step that could protect their sight for years to come.
Because vision loss develops so gradually, many people remain completely unaware until permanent damage has already occurred.
What Is Glaucoma?
Glaucoma is a group of eye conditions that damage the optic nerve, the vital connection between your eye and your brain. In most cases, this damage is associated with increased pressure inside the eye (known as intraocular pressure), although some people develop glaucoma despite having pressure within the normal range.
Whatever the cause, glaucoma damages the optic nerve over time, resulting in progressive and irreversible vision loss. It usually begins by affecting peripheral (side) vision before eventually threatening central vision if left untreated.
Glaucoma is often called the 'silent thief of sight' because, in its most common form — chronic open-angle glaucoma — it develops slowly and painlessly. There are usually no warning signs in the early stages. Most people cannot feel increased eye pressure and do not notice the gradual loss of peripheral vision until the disease is well advanced. Unfortunately, by this stage, permanent damage has already occurred.
Types of Glaucoma
Chronic Open-Angle Glaucoma
This is the most common form of glaucoma in Ireland, accounting for the vast majority of cases. The eye's drainage system gradually becomes less efficient, causing pressure to rise slowly over many years. Because this happens without discomfort or noticeable changes in vision, most people have no idea anything is wrong until the condition is detected during a routine eye examination.
Acute Angle-Closure Glaucoma
This is a much rarer but more dramatic form of glaucoma in which eye pressure rises suddenly. Symptoms include severe eye pain, headache, nausea, blurred vision and seeing coloured halos around lights. This is a medical emergency requiring immediate treatment. Anyone experiencing these symptoms should seek urgent medical attention without delay.
Normal-Tension Glaucoma
In this form, the optic nerve becomes damaged despite eye pressure remaining within the normal range. Although the exact cause is not fully understood, reduced blood flow to the optic nerve is thought to play a role. It serves as an important reminder that glaucoma is not solely a disease of high eye pressure.
Who Is at Risk?
Although glaucoma can affect anyone, several factors significantly increase the likelihood of developing the condition.
Family History
Glaucoma has a strong genetic component. If you have a close relative with glaucoma, your risk is at least four times greater than that of the general population. Family members of anyone diagnosed with glaucoma should ensure they attend regular eye examinations.
Age
The risk of glaucoma increases steadily with age. Chronic open-angle glaucoma is most commonly diagnosed in people over the age of 60, although it can occur much earlier. Anyone over 40 with additional risk factors should be particularly vigilant.
Ethnicity
People of African or Caribbean heritage have a significantly higher risk of developing glaucoma and often at a younger age. People of East Asian heritage have an increased risk of angle-closure glaucoma. Regular eye examinations are especially important for these groups.
Elevated Eye Pressure
Raised intraocular pressure, sometimes referred to as ocular hypertension, is one of the most important risk factors. Whilst not everyone with high eye pressure develops glaucoma, careful monitoring is essential.
Other Risk Factors
Other factors that increase the risk include:
- High myopia (short-sightedness)
- Diabetes
- High blood pressure or cardiovascular disease
- Long-term steroid medication use
- Previous eye injury
- A family history of glaucoma
How Glaucoma Is Detected
Because glaucoma rarely causes symptoms until it is well advanced, regular comprehensive eye examinations remain the most effective way to detect the disease before permanent sight loss occurs.
Optometrists are often the first healthcare professionals to identify glaucoma, with the majority of patients being diagnosed following a routine sight test.
During a glaucoma assessment your optometrist may:
- Measure your intraocular pressure
- Examine the appearance of your optic nerve
- Assess your peripheral vision using a visual field test
- Measure the thickness of your cornea
- Perform Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) scanning to produce highly detailed images of the optic nerve and retinal nerve fibre layer, allowing very early structural changes to be identified
No single test can diagnose glaucoma in isolation. Instead, your optometrist considers the results of several investigations alongside your age, family history and other risk factors before deciding whether further assessment is required.
Treatment: Protecting the Vision You Have
Glaucoma cannot currently be cured, and vision that has already been lost cannot be restored. However, modern treatments are highly effective at slowing or preventing further damage, allowing most people diagnosed early to maintain useful vision throughout their lifetime.
Eye Drops
Prescription eye drops remain the most common treatment. They work either by reducing the amount of fluid produced inside the eye or by improving its drainage, thereby lowering intraocular pressure. Consistent daily use is essential to protect the optic nerve.
Laser Treatment
Selective Laser Trabeculoplasty (SLT) is now widely recommended as a first-line treatment for many patients with open-angle glaucoma and ocular hypertension. This quick outpatient laser procedure improves the eye's natural drainage system, lowering eye pressure without the need for daily medication in many patients.
Surgery
When eye drops and laser treatment do not adequately control glaucoma, surgery may be recommended. Procedures such as trabeculectomy or minimally invasive glaucoma surgery (MIGS) improve fluid drainage and reduce eye pressure, helping preserve vision over the long term.
Don't Wait for Symptoms That May Never Come
Glaucoma Awareness Week exists because too many people continue to lose vision unnecessarily from a condition that is often entirely manageable when detected early.
With thousands across Ireland thought to be living with undiagnosed glaucoma, regular eye examinations remain the single most important step anyone can take to protect their sight. If you have a family history of glaucoma, are over 60, are of African or Caribbean heritage, have diabetes, are highly short-sighted, or have been told you have raised eye pressure, attending regular eye examinations is essential. Glaucoma may give you no warning until significant, irreversible damage has already occurred.
If someone in your family has glaucoma, use this week as an opportunity to encourage other relatives to have their eyes examined. Glaucoma runs in families, but blindness from glaucoma can often be prevented through early detection and appropriate treatment.
At Optical Express, our comprehensive eye examinations include advanced glaucoma assessment using technologies such as OCT imaging, visual field testing and intraocular pressure measurement to help identify the earliest signs of disease.
If you have not had an eye examination within the last two years — or sooner if you have known risk factors — now is the time to book one. Your sight is irreplaceable. Protecting it starts with a single comprehensive eye examination.
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