Glaucoma Medication Can Protect You from Early Death

There’s been some uncertainty about whether having glaucoma is associated with a shortened lifespan.  An analysis of over 15,000 glaucoma-related deaths showed that glaucoma is associated with several chronic conditions – high blood pressure, diabetes, or asthma – that themselves cause earlier death.  So it was not surprising that researchers should examine the possible effects of treating glaucoma on mortality rates.  Such a study has been published in the Archives of Ophthalmology.    

University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, scientists analyzed data from more than 21,500 glaucoma patients over 40 who were enrolled in a managed care network. 

Over a 4-year period, there were 237 deaths.  The use of any class of glaucoma medication was associated with a 74% reduction in mortality during the period of the study, compared with those not taking any glaucoma meds.  There was no obvious difference between the classes of glaucoma medications in this respect. 

The researchers stare that they adjusted the analyses to account for demographic characteristics and comorbid conditions (chronic illnesses), suggesting that the use of anti-glaucoma drugs had a specific association with prolonged lifespan.  However, it’s possible that taking glaucoma medication ‘according to instructions’ was linked to having more health-conscious habits.  A direct cause-and-effect relationship can only be determined with a prospective well-controlled study – something that’s not ethically possible to conduct. Anyhow – if you’ve got glaucoma, keep taking your meds.