Research to Prevent Blindness

Thyroid Problems May Increase Glaucoma Risk

Dr. Girkin

Christopher Girkin, M.D., is one of several Uiniversity of Alabama Birmingham galucoma researchers who used funds from an RPB unrestricted grant (to the department of ophthalmology) to study the connection between thyroid conditions and glaucoma.

According to an RPB-supported study, people who have had a thyroid condition at some point in their life are at an increased risk of developing glaucoma. The link between glaucoma and thyroid disorders may be due to chemical deposits in the blood vessels that circulate blood to the eye, causing an increase in pressure within the eyeball. Read the story.

top

November 10, 2008

Glaucoma

Related News: Glaucoma

Watch The Video

RPB Hosts Virtual Glaucoma Event

RPB grantees provide expert advice on glaucoma in the first event of the "Lunch & Learn" series.

Researchers Identify Biomarker for Glaucoma Damage

The RPB-supported researchers hope their finding will lead to tests to identify cell damage before irreversible vision loss.

A Career Retooled

Dr. David Beebe's studies of the vitreous body - the gel that fills the eye - are aimed at identifying the mechanism responsible for age-related nuclear cataracts and open angle glaucoma.

Watch The Video

Research Finds Risk of Glaucoma Blindness Drops by Half

Compared to earlier generations, today's generation has a 50% reduced probability of losing sight to glaucoma 20 years after a diagnosis, according to research supported by RPB.Read the story.Read the...

RPB Study Urges Glaucoma Screening for Older African Americans

Routine screening of older African Americans for glaucoma -- a high-risk group -- would significantly reduce the incidence of blindness at relatively low cost, RPB researchers report in a recently published...

“Smart” Contacts May Someday Test for and Treat Glaucoma

Scientists have designed and tested a pressure-sensing contact lens that will, in the future, allow glaucoma patients to monitor their eye pressure at home, providing more detailed and continuous information in...