The partnership between Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and UCL Institute of Ophthalmology has created the oldest and largest centre in the world for treatment of, and research into, ocular diseases.
Glaucoma, Genes and Me is a unique event that brings together the research participants, family history research partners, the Society of Genealogists, and charitable sponsors, Fight for Sight and the International Glaucoma Association. Over 120 people are expected to attend the event, which will be held at the Anatomy Building, UCL, Gower St, London, on 22 September 2009.

In August 2006, Dr. Paul Foster and Dr. Sancy Low started work on a research project which aims at studying more than 80 families from the UK who all include one relative who has primary angle-closure glaucoma (PACG). The project will be completed in early 2010 and has already shown that one in five first degree relatives of patients with PACG may also be at risk. The project will be presented at the Glaucoma, Genes and Me event to the families who are currently taking part in the research. One of the key objectives of the event is to discover, through group discussions, the areas of most importance to PACG patients and their families.  This will enable future research to focus on those areas and improve patient care.

The project is carried out with the help of the Society of Genealogists, led by Dr. Geoff Swinfield and Diana Bouglas, who have helped collect the family history data to facilitate this research and is sponsored by The Richard Desmond Charitable Trust via a grant from Fight for Sight, as well as the International Glaucoma Association.

David Wright chief executive of the International Glaucoma Association commented:
‘This research concentrates efforts and resources on the second most common form of glaucoma, primary angle closure glaucoma. The International Glaucoma Association is very proud to support this project because it represents an effort to better understand this multifactorial type of glaucoma in which there is a clear genetic risk factor. It is hoped that it will lead to the improvement of its diagnosis and management in the future.’

-ENDS-

Notes for Editors

If you would like to attend this event on the 22 September please contact Rebecca Fairbairn on 020 7566 2628.

About Moorfield

• Opened in 1805, Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust is one of the world’s leading centres for ophthalmic treatment and teaching. It is the oldest and largest specialist eye hospital in the world, and became one of the UK’s first NHS foundation trusts in 2004. 
• With our research partner, the UCL Institute of Ophthalmology, we are embarking on an exciting programme of research in order to find cures for diseases currently untreatable.  UCL Partners, of which both organisations are an integral part, was recently named as one of the first academic health science centres in the country.
• We treat the entire range of eye diseases from cataract, corneal and retinal conditions to complex diseases, dealing with almost 400,000 patient visits in 2008/09.
• For further information about Moorfields, please visit www.moorfields.nhs.uk.

About the International Glaucoma Association

• The International Glaucoma Association is the charity for people with glaucoma, with the mission to raise awareness of glaucoma, promote research related to early diagnosis and treatment and to provide support to patients and all those who care for them. It is a registered charity in England and Wales (number 274681) and is the oldest patient based glaucoma association in the world (35 years). Everyday, the organisation provides free information on any aspect of glaucoma and operates the IGA Sightline (helpline) to answer questions about glaucoma and other related eye conditions (tel. 01233 64 81 70, Mon-Fri 9.30am to 5.00pm). The IGA supports the UK Vision Strategy.
• For further information about glaucoma and the IGA please contact:
  Sarah Zerbib, Marketing & PR Officer
  Email:  s.zerbib@iga.org.uk               
  Tel: 01233 64 81 69                Mobile: 07856 68 79 31

About the Society of Genealogists

• Founded in 1911, the Society of Genealogists (SoG) is Britain’s premier family history society with some 11,000 members most of whom have been researching their family history for many years. The Society maintains a splendid genealogical library and education centre in Clerkenwell in London.
• The Society’s collections are particularly valuable for research before the start of civil registration of births marriages and deaths in 1837 but there is plenty for the beginner too, including the Free Family History Access area where beginners can get a taste of some of the online sources such as indexes to censuses and births, marriages and death records that will help them start their research.
• The Society has many unique unpublished manuscript notes on families as well as thousands of printed and unpublished family histories. Its library contains Britain’s largest collection of church records. Along with registers, the library holds local histories, copies of churchyard gravestone inscriptions, poll books, trade directories and a wealth of information about the parishes where our ancestors lived.
• Many of the Society’s unique indexes are online including Boyd’s Marriage Index with more than 7 million names, indexes of wills and marriage licences, apprentices and masters (1710-1774), London City Apprenticeships, Boyd’s Inhabitants of London as well as records such as the Bank of England will abstracts, Trinity House petitions and information on Teachers and Civil Servants. SoG Data from the library can be found online with partners British Origins or FindmyPast and the Society of Genealogists has recently launched data on its website www.sog.org.uk  exclusively for its members.
• The Society of Genealogists holds regular study days, lectures and evening classes along with workshops demonstrating computer programs and databases of use to family historians. A diary of events and booking forms are available from the Society on 020 7553 3290 or on the website www.sog.org.uk .
• More information about the Society can be found on its extensive website at www.sog.org.uk
  Press or any further enquiries should be directed to: Else Churchill Genealogist                                   

Direct line 020 7702 5488   e-mail genealogy@sog.org.uk
                        The Society of Genealogists
                       14 Charterhouse Buildings, Goswell Road,
                       London EC1M 7BA
                          Registered Charity No. 233701.
                          Company limited by guarantee.  Registered No. 115703. 

Key facts about glaucoma

• Glaucoma affects 2% of the population over the age of forty
• Half of those who have glaucoma are unaware of their condition
• Glaucoma is a leading cause of preventable blindness in the UK today
• 95% of the sensory input to the brain required for driving comes from vision
• Glaucoma damages the off-centre parts of the field of vision first and leaves the central detailed vision until the late stages of the condition, so a person who has moderately advanced glaucoma might still be able to read the bottom line of the sight chart perfectly well. This off-centre damage is not noticed, partly because we use our central vision most of the time and partly because the brain can complete its trick of using one eye to fill in for the other
• Glaucoma accounts for 13-14% of the people on the blind register in England and Wales
• Damage caused by glaucoma cannot be recovered
• Glaucoma can be treated effectively and further visual loss prevented in most cases
• Early detection is the key to the control of glaucomatous visual loss
• Everybody should have an eye test at least every 2 years but people who are over the age of 60 and people at higher risk should have an eye test every year
• Detection requires the use of three tests:
• Ophthalmoscopy (a visual examination of the optic nerve head)
• Tonometery (a measurement of the pressure within the eye)
• Perimetry (a check of the field of vision)
• Treatment of glaucoma will usually be with eye drops, but may include laser or surgery if necessary