£25,000 settlement obtained following delayed glaucoma diagnosis

Julie Crossley, a medical negligence specialist at Ashtons Legal, has obtained a settlement of £25,000 for a man who developed advanced glaucoma as a result of a delayed referral.

Mr C attended his opticians in 2010 and was told that his prescription had changed and that he needed new glasses. His intraocular pressures (IOPs) were recorded and were high enough to put him in the ‘at risk’ category for glaucoma.

As a result of the readings recorded, the optician should have conducted visual field tests and referred him for treatment. Instead, Mr C was told to return in two years for a further eye test and was not informed of his high IOPs and what they meant in terms of glaucoma risk.

Mr C, unaware of the significance of the previous findings, did not have another eye test until four years later. He was seen by a different optician at the same practice and once again his IOPs were recorded as being much higher than normal. This optician also failed to make a referral or inform Mr C of the risks of the findings.

In 2016, two years after his previous eye test, Mr C attended a different opticians. His IOPs were recorded and he was immediately referred to hospital where he was diagnosed with advanced glaucoma. As a result of the delayed referral, Mr C suffered a significant loss of his peripheral vision.

Julie comments: “This is a sad case whereby Mr C lost much of his peripheral vision due to the failures of the two opticians. Once they had a diagnosis there was a strict regime of eye drops which affected Mr C’s day to day activities, including his work. As his eyesight deteriorated he had to sub-contract much of the work he would have carried out himself.”