Glaucoma, a leading cause of irreversible blindness in this country is not always easy to diagnose

Because vision lost from glaucoma is lost forever it is important to detect this disease early.  Early diagnosis, however can sometimes be difficult.  This is because unlike blood pressure glaucoma cannot be diagnosed by a simple pressure reading.  As many as 20% of the population can have this disease and still have normal or even low pressures.  Clinicians can often suspect glaucoma by the appearance of the optic nerve since this is where the nerve fiber layer of the retina passes on its way to the brain.  With the aid of new high tech instruments such as ocular computerized tomograms (OCT) that can actually measure the thickness of the nerve fiber layer early diagnosis can be made.  Visual field testing is also a valuable tool since it can detect vision loss far earlier than a patient could on their own.  Actually most patients are only aware of vision loss when the disease has reached an advanced state.

Since glaucoma is a leading cause of blindness in this country and since early detection can prevent loss of vision it is important for all people to be checked for this insidious disease.  At North Shore Eye Care our skilled Board Certified Ophthalmologists can help you be sure that your eyes are in good health.  Along with our friendly staff and state of the art diagnostic equipment you can be sure that you will be in good hands.  Our practice has been in existence for 50 years and we have consistently been recognized in Castle Connelly's Top Doctors.

At North Shore Eye Care we serve patients from Riverhead, the Hamptons, Shelter Island, Greenport, Calverton, Wading River, Ridge, Shoreham, Wading River, Mastic, the Moriches, Middle Island, Manorville, Medford, Patchogue, Coram, Stony Brook, Port Jefferson, Smithtown, Kings Park, Northport, Huntiington, Dix Hills, Commack, Melville, Jericho, Port Washington, Garden City and many other areas on Long Island and New York City.