The latest investigation into a promising new genetic test for glaucoma – the leading cause of blindness has the ability to identify 15 times more people who are at higher risk of developing glaucoma than existing genetic tests. Senior author, Flinders University Professor Jamie Craig, says the latest research highlights the potential of the test in glaucoma screening and management.
“Genetic testing is not currently a routine part of glaucoma diagnosis and care, but this test has the potential to change that. We’re now in a strong position to start testing this in clinical trials to recruit people without glaucoma to take part,” says Matthew Flinders Distinguished Professor Craig, a consultant ophthalmologist who also leads a in world-leading glaucoma research program at Flinders University, funded by Australia’s NHMRC.
You can help: A research study is also underway to validate this and similar tests in identifying people at high and low risk of glaucoma and age-related macular degeneration: further information:
please complete the form at the link https://qualtrics.flinders.edu.au/jfe/form/SV_bw4ikQMFFR6t0ea
Source: The paper, Association of monogenic and polygenic risk with the prevalence of open-angle glaucoma (2021) by OM Siggs, X Han, A Qassim, E Souzeau, S Kuruvilla, HN Marshall, S Mullany, DA Mackey, AW Hewitt, P Gharahkhani, S MacGregor and JE Craig, has been published in JAMA Ophthalmology DOI: 10.1001/jamaophthalmol.2021.2440