1 00:00:00,040 --> 00:00:04,479 Speaker 1: Today is World Sight Day, and I'm joined by optometrist 2 00:00:04,519 --> 00:00:07,800 Speaker 1: doctor Dominique Burbeck, who is with Sam Rey on the 3 00:00:07,840 --> 00:00:11,720 Speaker 1: importance of getting your eyesight checked. Dominique, good morning, good morning, 4 00:00:11,920 --> 00:00:14,200 Speaker 1: Thank you for coming in. So World sit Day, what's 5 00:00:14,200 --> 00:00:15,120 Speaker 1: the important message? 6 00:00:15,200 --> 00:00:19,079 Speaker 2: Yeah, so a lot of vision loss can occur, but 7 00:00:19,160 --> 00:00:22,279 Speaker 2: a lot of it's actually preventable with early diagnosis and treatment, 8 00:00:22,640 --> 00:00:25,319 Speaker 2: so up to eighty percent. So the message it of 9 00:00:25,360 --> 00:00:27,880 Speaker 2: World Site Day is go out and get your eyes tested. 10 00:00:28,320 --> 00:00:31,760 Speaker 2: So hopefully we can diagnose eye conditions early and hopefully 11 00:00:31,800 --> 00:00:34,479 Speaker 2: treat them early, so to prevent vision loss from occurring. 12 00:00:34,840 --> 00:00:37,120 Speaker 1: When's a good age? Is there a good age we 13 00:00:37,479 --> 00:00:38,760 Speaker 1: should start getting them checked? 14 00:00:38,800 --> 00:00:42,720 Speaker 2: Any age? See we recommend well, their National Health and 15 00:00:42,800 --> 00:00:46,400 Speaker 2: Medical Research Council actually recommends getting your eyes tested every 16 00:00:46,440 --> 00:00:49,080 Speaker 2: two years, right, but every year if you're over the 17 00:00:49,120 --> 00:00:51,600 Speaker 2: age of sixty five. Really you have diabetes? 18 00:00:51,720 --> 00:00:55,640 Speaker 1: Okay, all right, diabetes too presumably or any diabetics diabetes. 19 00:00:55,760 --> 00:00:59,160 Speaker 1: Yet it's interesting, and I think I was in my 20 00:00:59,280 --> 00:01:02,840 Speaker 1: late thirties I reckon where I suddenly noticed couldn't see 21 00:01:02,880 --> 00:01:05,199 Speaker 1: the writing in the newspaper as well as I could 22 00:01:05,360 --> 00:01:08,839 Speaker 1: that had to read it in the sunlight basically and 23 00:01:08,880 --> 00:01:11,280 Speaker 1: the small print. So yeah, you go along and sure 24 00:01:11,360 --> 00:01:14,520 Speaker 1: enough you've as one optometrist very early on in the 25 00:01:14,560 --> 00:01:16,560 Speaker 1: process explained to me, I think probably the first time 26 00:01:16,560 --> 00:01:18,800 Speaker 1: I went. You're born with say one hundred units, and 27 00:01:19,200 --> 00:01:21,479 Speaker 1: every year you lose a unit to the point where 28 00:01:21,600 --> 00:01:23,920 Speaker 1: you get to your late thirties forties and suddenly you've 29 00:01:24,240 --> 00:01:27,960 Speaker 1: got forty units less eyesight and you start needing glasses. 30 00:01:28,000 --> 00:01:31,039 Speaker 1: So it is is it reading glasses essentially? And are 31 00:01:31,080 --> 00:01:34,360 Speaker 1: the ones in chemists and you reject shops et cetera 32 00:01:34,640 --> 00:01:35,240 Speaker 1: good as any. 33 00:01:35,720 --> 00:01:39,039 Speaker 2: Yeah, so you're talking about pres bopia. So that is 34 00:01:39,040 --> 00:01:41,600 Speaker 2: sort of an age related to your lens changed to 35 00:01:41,640 --> 00:01:44,559 Speaker 2: your lens. So your lens, much like a camera lens, 36 00:01:44,680 --> 00:01:48,640 Speaker 2: is responsible you're focusing. So yeah, exactly like your optometrist said, 37 00:01:49,960 --> 00:01:52,320 Speaker 2: when you're young, you can hold things up really close, 38 00:01:52,360 --> 00:01:54,680 Speaker 2: and the lens is really flexible, so it can change 39 00:01:54,680 --> 00:01:57,640 Speaker 2: shape to bring things into focus. Okay, but as we 40 00:01:57,680 --> 00:02:00,800 Speaker 2: get older that that lens loses. It's the ability, and 41 00:02:00,800 --> 00:02:03,040 Speaker 2: then all of a sudden your arms aren't quite long enough, 42 00:02:03,120 --> 00:02:05,120 Speaker 2: and that's when you're trying to reach out really far 43 00:02:05,960 --> 00:02:08,280 Speaker 2: or chasing that good lighting and to read the menu 44 00:02:08,280 --> 00:02:11,440 Speaker 2: at restaurants, and that's when you need reading glasses. And yeah, 45 00:02:11,440 --> 00:02:15,040 Speaker 2: it can be at age thirty sometimes early forties forties, 46 00:02:15,360 --> 00:02:17,840 Speaker 2: and that changes up until the age about sixty five. 47 00:02:18,480 --> 00:02:21,200 Speaker 2: Chemist glasses, so glasses are just there to sort of 48 00:02:21,440 --> 00:02:24,640 Speaker 2: bend light to bring things into focus. So they're not 49 00:02:24,680 --> 00:02:26,480 Speaker 2: going to do any harm to your eyes. It's going 50 00:02:26,560 --> 00:02:29,000 Speaker 2: to help you be able to see better. But what 51 00:02:29,040 --> 00:02:31,520 Speaker 2: we recommend is if you're going to use the chemist glasses, 52 00:02:31,600 --> 00:02:35,440 Speaker 2: to make sure that you're getting your eyes tested every 53 00:02:35,520 --> 00:02:38,040 Speaker 2: two years or every year if you're over the age 54 00:02:38,040 --> 00:02:42,120 Speaker 2: of sixty five, to check for those eye conditions, because 55 00:02:42,360 --> 00:02:44,400 Speaker 2: a lot of the time you can have eye conditions 56 00:02:44,440 --> 00:02:47,200 Speaker 2: without any have any signs or symptoms. So we really 57 00:02:47,200 --> 00:02:49,079 Speaker 2: need to make sure you're getting your eyes tested. 58 00:02:49,320 --> 00:02:51,720 Speaker 1: Okay, all right, So what can if you don't get 59 00:02:51,720 --> 00:02:53,920 Speaker 1: it tested? I mean, presumably for most people it is 60 00:02:53,960 --> 00:02:57,640 Speaker 1: that age vision thing, But are there other this what's 61 00:02:57,720 --> 00:03:01,960 Speaker 1: the periphery thing that you don't realize you're losing that 62 00:03:02,680 --> 00:03:07,480 Speaker 1: and that is glu coma that yeah, yeah, so that is. 63 00:03:07,400 --> 00:03:10,160 Speaker 2: One of the common causes of vision loss among Australian adults. 64 00:03:10,200 --> 00:03:12,920 Speaker 2: And you're right, yeah, it impacts your peripheral vision. Now, 65 00:03:12,919 --> 00:03:15,680 Speaker 2: if you imagine if you're losing your peripheral vision quite slowly, 66 00:03:16,360 --> 00:03:19,720 Speaker 2: many patients are sort of asymptomatic in the early stages. 67 00:03:20,480 --> 00:03:23,119 Speaker 2: The tricky thing about glaucoma is we need to diagnose 68 00:03:23,160 --> 00:03:26,400 Speaker 2: it early because once you have vision loss from glaucoma, 69 00:03:26,680 --> 00:03:29,600 Speaker 2: we can't actually get it back right. So that kind 70 00:03:29,639 --> 00:03:32,160 Speaker 2: of comes down to why we recommend getting your eyes 71 00:03:32,160 --> 00:03:35,600 Speaker 2: tested more frequently so we can diagnose if we notice 72 00:03:35,640 --> 00:03:39,600 Speaker 2: any changes, treat it earlier to hopefully prevent vision loss, 73 00:03:39,600 --> 00:03:41,960 Speaker 2: and then tunnel vision, which is when you lose all 74 00:03:42,000 --> 00:03:44,720 Speaker 2: of your peripheral vision from occurring. 75 00:03:45,040 --> 00:03:47,280 Speaker 1: Okay, all right, so that's important. Now you do a 76 00:03:47,320 --> 00:03:50,720 Speaker 1: lot of work in indigenous communities, don't you. So are 77 00:03:50,760 --> 00:03:54,400 Speaker 1: there different issues there? I suppose if somebody is living 78 00:03:54,440 --> 00:03:56,880 Speaker 1: out in the outback presumable, if you're in the apy 79 00:03:57,000 --> 00:03:59,760 Speaker 1: lands as an example, in the sunshine all the time, 80 00:03:59,760 --> 00:04:02,360 Speaker 1: in the dust that blows up, there are completely different 81 00:04:02,400 --> 00:04:04,080 Speaker 1: issues to living in the city. 82 00:04:04,240 --> 00:04:07,200 Speaker 2: Yeah, so it's quite interesting. So the work that we're 83 00:04:07,200 --> 00:04:10,240 Speaker 2: doing at wadly bringing our original health equity at summary, 84 00:04:10,880 --> 00:04:14,400 Speaker 2: the work I'm working on primarily is looking at diabetes 85 00:04:14,440 --> 00:04:17,599 Speaker 2: and diabetic eye disease, which is basically just damage to 86 00:04:17,640 --> 00:04:20,760 Speaker 2: the blood vessels at the back of the eye. And 87 00:04:20,839 --> 00:04:23,680 Speaker 2: what we're looking at is trying to improve how we 88 00:04:23,720 --> 00:04:27,720 Speaker 2: can increase screening rates among aboriginal tries straight iron to 89 00:04:27,800 --> 00:04:31,640 Speaker 2: people mainly here in the city, So having access to 90 00:04:31,680 --> 00:04:36,719 Speaker 2: culturally safe ite tests and optometry visits and then hopefully 91 00:04:37,120 --> 00:04:40,120 Speaker 2: diagnosing diabetic eye disease earlier because it is one of 92 00:04:40,160 --> 00:04:44,039 Speaker 2: the leading causes of vision loss among working adults. But 93 00:04:44,160 --> 00:04:46,200 Speaker 2: what we know is ninety eight percent of that vision 94 00:04:46,240 --> 00:04:48,080 Speaker 2: loss is actually preventable. 95 00:04:48,200 --> 00:04:51,360 Speaker 1: Okay, through managing your diabetes and diet and all the rest. 96 00:04:51,560 --> 00:04:54,039 Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, exactly, So try. 97 00:04:53,839 --> 00:04:56,320 Speaker 1: And avoid it, here's the key thing, and exercise and 98 00:04:56,360 --> 00:05:01,560 Speaker 1: everything else. Okay, So the the aim of today World 99 00:05:01,680 --> 00:05:03,360 Speaker 1: Sight Day? How did it come about? Do you know 100 00:05:03,480 --> 00:05:05,600 Speaker 1: what's the history of it? Is it just the importance 101 00:05:05,640 --> 00:05:07,440 Speaker 1: of just getting your eyes checked, That's all it's meant 102 00:05:07,440 --> 00:05:07,880 Speaker 1: to promote. 103 00:05:08,000 --> 00:05:10,960 Speaker 2: Yeah, So it's promoting the importance of atting you isest. 104 00:05:11,160 --> 00:05:13,279 Speaker 2: I think it's a good reminder that if you haven't 105 00:05:13,320 --> 00:05:16,279 Speaker 2: had your eyes tested in those recommended time frames, now's 106 00:05:16,279 --> 00:05:19,280 Speaker 2: a good chance to think about booking an eye test. 107 00:05:20,160 --> 00:05:22,760 Speaker 2: A really good website is actually a good Vision for 108 00:05:22,839 --> 00:05:25,920 Speaker 2: Life dot com di au. Okay, you can log onto that. 109 00:05:26,040 --> 00:05:28,000 Speaker 2: You can type in where you live and how far 110 00:05:28,080 --> 00:05:30,480 Speaker 2: you're willing to travel, and will actually bring up all 111 00:05:30,480 --> 00:05:33,080 Speaker 2: the optometrists in the area. Say, if you've got a 112 00:05:33,080 --> 00:05:35,880 Speaker 2: grandchild or a child and they want to get the 113 00:05:35,920 --> 00:05:38,840 Speaker 2: eyes tested. You can also select optometrists that have an 114 00:05:38,920 --> 00:05:40,840 Speaker 2: interest in children's vision as well. 115 00:05:41,000 --> 00:05:44,120 Speaker 1: Okay, what about cataracts Now they form in older people 116 00:05:44,120 --> 00:05:47,000 Speaker 1: and laser treatments available these days and can make all 117 00:05:47,000 --> 00:05:50,400 Speaker 1: the difference between someone wearing glasses or not. Is gloucomo? 118 00:05:50,480 --> 00:05:53,440 Speaker 1: Is that something that affects you long range vision or 119 00:05:53,880 --> 00:05:56,320 Speaker 1: you're reading vision or both. Yeah, so. 120 00:05:57,800 --> 00:05:59,760 Speaker 2: You kind of brought up three of the main common 121 00:06:00,520 --> 00:06:03,160 Speaker 2: vision loss. So refractive era is your need for glasses, 122 00:06:03,160 --> 00:06:05,480 Speaker 2: and it kind of touched on reading glasses. There are 123 00:06:05,480 --> 00:06:08,640 Speaker 2: other types of refractive era as well, so that's going 124 00:06:08,680 --> 00:06:11,080 Speaker 2: to impact So if you're short sighted, that's going to 125 00:06:11,120 --> 00:06:14,800 Speaker 2: impact your distance vision. So your distance visions blurry, but 126 00:06:14,920 --> 00:06:17,839 Speaker 2: you can see up close. You've got longsided which is 127 00:06:17,920 --> 00:06:21,160 Speaker 2: kind of the opposite. It's a little bit trickier. Usually 128 00:06:21,160 --> 00:06:23,600 Speaker 2: you struggle up close first, but then it can impact 129 00:06:23,640 --> 00:06:26,520 Speaker 2: your distance vision, and then you've got a stigmatism, which 130 00:06:26,560 --> 00:06:28,120 Speaker 2: is when the front surface of the eye is not 131 00:06:28,160 --> 00:06:30,440 Speaker 2: completely round. So instead of being like a basketball's a 132 00:06:30,480 --> 00:06:32,600 Speaker 2: little bit more like an Aussie rules football, right, and 133 00:06:32,680 --> 00:06:37,440 Speaker 2: you can get sort of double vision because light bends directions. Cataract, 134 00:06:38,000 --> 00:06:44,080 Speaker 2: So cataract is an age related condition. Unfortunately, everyone eventually 135 00:06:44,160 --> 00:06:48,960 Speaker 2: develops cataract if you live long enough and cataracts and 136 00:06:49,000 --> 00:06:52,080 Speaker 2: what happens is is the lens, like I mentioned before, 137 00:06:52,279 --> 00:06:55,919 Speaker 2: much like a camera lens, it becomes more cloudy and 138 00:06:55,960 --> 00:06:59,040 Speaker 2: a bit more yellow in color as we age, and 139 00:06:59,080 --> 00:07:02,640 Speaker 2: that's not treated initially with laser. What they actually do, 140 00:07:03,200 --> 00:07:06,719 Speaker 2: it's a relatively safe procedure. So an ophthalmologist performs this. 141 00:07:07,560 --> 00:07:11,600 Speaker 2: They leave the bag that the lens sits in, they 142 00:07:11,640 --> 00:07:14,080 Speaker 2: break up the cataract and the blurry lens and they 143 00:07:14,160 --> 00:07:16,760 Speaker 2: suck it out with a vacuum and they replace it 144 00:07:16,800 --> 00:07:18,920 Speaker 2: with an artificial lens. And when they replace it with 145 00:07:18,960 --> 00:07:21,840 Speaker 2: the artificial lens, often they put your prescription of your 146 00:07:21,840 --> 00:07:26,320 Speaker 2: glasses in the eye, right, So often patients actually see 147 00:07:26,400 --> 00:07:29,240 Speaker 2: better than what they did before they had the cataract. 148 00:07:29,280 --> 00:07:31,320 Speaker 1: Okay, you said relatively safe. 149 00:07:31,800 --> 00:07:34,760 Speaker 2: I mean, it's a medical procedure, so there's always risks 150 00:07:34,760 --> 00:07:39,640 Speaker 2: that are involved with performing medical procedures, but because cataract 151 00:07:39,720 --> 00:07:42,000 Speaker 2: is so common, it's probably one of the most performed 152 00:07:42,000 --> 00:07:46,560 Speaker 2: procedures going around. It takes about twenty minutes and yeah, 153 00:07:46,880 --> 00:07:49,600 Speaker 2: for each eye, and usually your vision's pretty. 154 00:07:49,320 --> 00:07:52,400 Speaker 1: Good the next day, okay, So they do both at once. 155 00:07:52,880 --> 00:07:55,520 Speaker 2: No, they usually do one eye first, starting with the 156 00:07:55,560 --> 00:07:59,160 Speaker 2: eye that's worse, okay, and then a month later you 157 00:07:59,240 --> 00:08:01,400 Speaker 2: might go in to get the other eye done well. 158 00:08:01,640 --> 00:08:04,640 Speaker 1: And these days, is that the common sort of procedure 159 00:08:04,720 --> 00:08:07,160 Speaker 1: for cataracts. That's how that's normally what it is. So 160 00:08:07,320 --> 00:08:08,640 Speaker 1: what's the laser bit then. 161 00:08:09,080 --> 00:08:14,040 Speaker 2: Yeah, so laser can there's lots of laser procedures. So 162 00:08:14,160 --> 00:08:18,800 Speaker 2: laser can correct your refractive error, so that's refractive surgery. 163 00:08:19,680 --> 00:08:24,000 Speaker 2: It can also sometimes after cataract surgery, there might be 164 00:08:24,040 --> 00:08:26,160 Speaker 2: a couple of cells that are sort of left behind 165 00:08:26,200 --> 00:08:29,520 Speaker 2: and these can multiply. We treat that with laser as well. 166 00:08:30,320 --> 00:08:32,240 Speaker 2: The other one is you can have laser treatment for 167 00:08:32,240 --> 00:08:36,320 Speaker 2: treatment of gaucoma. So gaucoma is associated with an ink 168 00:08:36,440 --> 00:08:39,560 Speaker 2: commonly associated with an increase in eye pressure. And to 169 00:08:39,640 --> 00:08:41,720 Speaker 2: treat it. We want to lower the eye pressure down, 170 00:08:41,880 --> 00:08:45,240 Speaker 2: so that can be done through eye drops or ophomologists 171 00:08:45,240 --> 00:08:48,600 Speaker 2: will actually laser where the fluid drains. So by lasering it, 172 00:08:48,600 --> 00:08:51,120 Speaker 2: it's going to increase how much fluid drains out of 173 00:08:51,160 --> 00:08:53,480 Speaker 2: the eye and then hopefully lower the eye pressure. 174 00:08:53,679 --> 00:08:57,000 Speaker 1: Right there. It is dominic fascinating discussion. Now, if people 175 00:08:57,040 --> 00:08:59,160 Speaker 1: want more info, you mentioned a website. Do you want 176 00:08:59,160 --> 00:08:59,880 Speaker 1: to give that out again? 177 00:09:00,240 --> 00:09:02,280 Speaker 2: So if you want to go into Good Vision for 178 00:09:02,440 --> 00:09:05,120 Speaker 2: Life dot com day, you'll be able to find an 179 00:09:05,160 --> 00:09:06,720 Speaker 2: optometrist in your local area. 180 00:09:06,840 --> 00:09:09,040 Speaker 1: All right, terrific, Look, thank you for your time this morning, 181 00:09:09,120 --> 00:09:10,760 Speaker 1: Thank you for coming in World Site Day. It's an 182 00:09:10,800 --> 00:09:13,080 Speaker 1: important message. So if you haven't been to get your 183 00:09:13,080 --> 00:09:15,320 Speaker 1: eyes checked for a while, make sure you make an appointment.