New perspectives on glaucoma: understanding the mechanisms underlying vision loss

Glaucoma is a disease of the retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) that leads to irreversible sight loss. It is the second leading cause of blindness globally, and the only functional biomarker for glaucoma measurable clinically is reduced visual field sensitivity. It has traditionally been assumed that conventional clinical measures of sensitivity are direct measures of RGC function. However, the relationship between retinal structure and visual field sensitivity is not straightforward. Findings from recent psychophysical research suggest that changes in visual processing in the visual cortex may contribute, in part, to the nature of visual field loss encountered in glaucoma. In parallel, recent research demonstrates how stimuli can be optimized to identify these changes clinically.

This presentation will discuss these recent advances in our understanding of glaucoma and how the condition could be better identified and followed in clinical practice.

Date: May 17
Time: 13:00-13:35
Location: Room Azur (Vi2166), 2nd floor, Vita, Norra Kajplan 6