State of the Art Glaucoma Testing 

 We Can Now Detect Glaucoma Six Years Earlier Than Traditional Testing Methods

In 0.8 Seconds 

The Downtown Vancouver Optometry Clinic is one of the first eye clinics in Canada to have the GDx VCC: a state-of-the-art diagnostic device that detects glaucoma six years earlier than standard glaucoma testing. 

 Facts: 

• 300,000 Canadians have glaucoma – only half of them are aware of it. 

• 350,000 Canadians will be diagnosed with glaucoma by the year 2020 as the population ages. 

• 20% of glaucoma patients have normal eye pressure. 

• 50% of your retinal nerves must be damaged before traditional / standard testing can detect glaucoma. 

Baseline Testing 

“Everyone should be presumed to have glaucoma unless proven otherwise.” 
                                                                                                Dr. Steven Drance
                                                                                                UBC School of Medicine 

The most important contribution you can make for your own well-being is to establish baseline data about your health.  Just like tracking your blood pressure or cholesterol level, your health care team relies on baseline data to measure against change.  Early detection and diagnosis is often the difference in being able to manage problems before permanent damage is done. 

Who Should Be Tested With The GDx? 

GDx testing is recommended by the world’s leading glaucoma specialists for anyone with a personal or family history of having glaucoma and anyone with risk factors for glaucoma. 

Risk Factors For Glaucoma 

Family history of glaucoma
Females of Asian descent
Persons of Hispanic descent
Persons of African descent (6 x at risk) 
Very nearsighted eyes
High intra-ocular pressure
Very thin corneas
Untreated high blood pressure
Smoking
Advancing age (> 40 years old)
History of migraine headache
History of eye trauma
Diabetes
Pigmentary Dispersion Syndrome
Some types of advancing cataracts 

Fees… $49 

The government of BC does not pay for the early detection of glaucoma with new technologies.  MSP will pay to treat glaucoma once it is diagnosed.  Some private insurers will reimburse you for this expense.  Your receipt is tax deductible as a medical expense. 

What is Glaucoma? 

There are two major types of glaucoma:
     1)     Angle Closure Glaucoma – a sudden rise in eye pressure with pain and foggy vision.
             This can result in damage to the optic nerve if left untreated.
     2)     Open Angle Glaucoma – is more common and produces a painless, slow progressive
             loss of (peripheral) vision. 

Two percent of people over the age of 35 are threatened by Open Angle Glaucoma.  When diagnosed early, blindness from glaucoma is almost always prevented. 

Because of an old and outdated definition, most people believe that glaucoma is an eye pressure disease; that is, if you have high eye pressure you have glaucoma, if you have low eye pressure you do not have glaucoma. 

The truth is, you can have “normal” eye pressure and still have glaucoma.  Eye pressure is only one risk factor for glaucoma. 

We can not cure glaucoma, but if caught early we can control its rate of progression.  Therefore, early detection and diagnosis is critical. 

Glaucoma Nerve Damage 

There are about 1.5 million nerve fibers (axons in the Nerve Fiber Layer) which carry information from the photoreceptors of the retina to the brain via the optic nerve. 

The GDx VCC measures the thickness of the Nerve Fiber Layer at the rim of the optic nerve.  A thinning of the Nerve Fiber Layer at the rim of the optic nerve always precedes damage to peripheral vision. 

The GDx VCC picks up glaucoma nerve damage earlier and more accurately than any testing previously available.  Once affordable to all offices, Nerve Fiber Layer testing will be the standard of care for all patients just as eye pressure testing is today. 

What If You Are Diagnosed With Glaucoma? 

If you are found to have glaucoma then your optometrist will refer you to a glaucoma sub-specialist for management. 

Vancouver is the home of an excellent glaucoma service where a team of eye surgeons who specialize only in glaucoma is assembled.  Our clinic has an excellent record of making accurate and timely referrals to these sub-specialists.  Information obtained with the GDx VCC will make those referrals even more accurate and timely.