Eye examinations: A new survey has highlighted a lack of awareness of eye disease among the Irish population and suggests that up to one million people may be putting themselves at risk because they are not going for regular eye examinations.
The survey, carried out by Gallup on behalf of the charity Fighting Blindness, found that 34 per cent of Irish adults do not have their eyes examined fully at least once every two years.
Regular eye examinations are vital to detect early signs of diseases such as AMD (age-related macular degeneration) or glaucoma. The disease is often related to ageing and the two most common types are "dry" and "wet" AMD. More than 60,000 Irish people suffer from it.
The cause of the disease is unknown but early detection is vital. It is the leading cause of vision loss for people over the age of 50 in the western world.
Consultant ophthalmic surgeon at Waterford Regional Hospital, Mr Stephen Beatty, outlined why the figures in the survey were worrying. Only 40 per cent of Irish respondents had their eyes tested in the previous year, and 26 per cent within the past one to two years.
But an eye test is not the same as an eye examination; an eye test will only assess your ability to see, but an eye examination is the only way to confirm the presence of an eye disease.
"As the figures in the survey relate to eye tests and not eye examinations, it is reasonable to assume that the numbers of people not having full eye examinations is much higher than one million," Mr Beatty said.
"The tragedy is that for some types of AMD, sight may be saved if it is detected early and treated swiftly," he said.
The survey was carried out in 11 countries, mostly in the EU, as well as Japan, Australia and the US.
Ireland was ranked second last ahead of Italy in terms of frequency of eye tests and fourth from last in terms of awareness of AMD.
Fighting Blindness, an Irish charity established in 1983, points out that eye disease can occur without any outward sign of anything being wrong.