Do optometrists screen for glaucoma?

A survey of optometrists practising in Nottingham was undertaken to identify their methods of screening for glaucoma in the community. There was found to be great variation in all parameters examined including referral criteria. Although all of the respondents screened for glaucoma, 50% appeared not to be aware of subtle optic disc signs of the disease, 8% never measured intra-ocular pressures and 19% never performed visual field analysis. In a general practice population age 50 and over, 73% of patients had visited their optician within the last two years, 67% knew glaucoma was an eye disease, but only 15% remembered being screened for glaucoma.