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Glaucoma patients should be educated about increased fall risk

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NEW YORK — People with glaucoma are at a higher risk for falls and fractures, and physicians should warn their patients about the risk, said Anne L. Coleman, MD, PhD.

Dr. Coleman spoke at the New Frontiers in Glaucoma meeting, held by Columbia University's College of Physicians and Surgeons. She cited a study, which she has taken part in, that included 4,216 women with osteoporosis. The study found that, with binocular visual field loss, the chances of falls and fractures increase. Of the women in the study, 2,069 had two or more falls in 3.9 years of follow-up, Dr. Coleman said.

"The reason why hip fractures are so serious is because it is one of the most expensive diseases ... in the elderly population for the U.S. government," she said.

Investigators have suggested in the past that the increased risk of falls might be associated with medications for glaucoma treatment, such as beta-blockers, but no concrete link of this type has been established, Dr. Coleman said. She said patients should be counseled regarding their increased risk of falling and fractures.