Annual Eye Exams: A Smart Way to Identify Age-related Eye Diseases

Beatitudes Campus is happy to be working with Blue Cross Blue Shield's Vision care.  Come to January's Town Hall to learn more about some special advantages for you through Vision Care.

According to the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO), once you reach age 60, it's important to have an eye exam every year. Checking your visual acuity isn't the only reason to get your eyes examined. An eye exam can also help identify age-related conditions such as cataracts, glaucoma, age-related macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, and other diseases.

What exactly are these common age-related eye diseases? The AAO defines them as:

• Cataracts – Light rays travel into the eye through the pupil, pass through a clear lens and hit the retina. In an eye with a cataract, the lens gets cloudy and light scatters throughout the eye instead of hitting the retina. The clouding of the eye happens when proteins in the lens break down (typically after age 40). People usually start to have some clouding of their lenses over age 60.
• Glaucoma – Glaucoma is a disease that damages your eye's optic nerve. It usually happens when fluid builds up in the front part of your eye. That extra fluid increases the pressure in your eye, damaging the optic nerve.
• Age-Related Macular Degeneration (AMD) – AMD is a deterioration of the eye's macula. The macula is a small area in the retina — the light-sensitive tissue lining the back of the eye. The macula is the part of the retina that is responsible for your central vision, allowing you to see fine details clearly.
• Diabetic Retinopathy – Diabetic retinopathy is the most common diabetic eye disease that occurs when blood vessels in the retina change. Sometimes these vessels swell and leak fluid or even close off completely. In other cases, abnormal new blood vessels grow on the surface of the retina.

Schedule Your Eye Exam – It is important that you schedule your annual eye exam. Your doctor will check for eye health as well as any prescription changes. You can schedule your eye exam by calling Vision Care at 602-358-0223 or visit VisionCareAZ.com.* Located at the Blue Cross Blue Shield of AZ campus at 2444 W. Las Palmeritas Drive, just 2 miles and a free shuttle ride from Beatitudes Campus.

Author Info: Beatitudes Campus

At the foundation of Beatitudes Campus is the vision of Church of the Beatitudes pastors and congregation members to create a better alternative for older adults than the nursing homes of the early 1960s. The type of community they imagined was the first of its kind in Arizona. Beatitudes Campus is proud to continue the legacy of our founders, by being a leader in the field of aging services for over 50 years.