More Than Half of Glaucoma Patients Go a Year Without Care. Here Is Why That Matters.

Glaucoma does not hurt. It does not blur your vision in the early stages, and it does not make you squint or rub your eyes. It takes peripheral vision first, slowly, in a way the brain is very good at filling in. By the time most people notice something is wrong on their own, they have already lost sight that cannot be brought back.

That is the context for a study published in mid-October that looked at how glaucoma care actually happens in everyday practice, not in clinical trials. The finding that stood out was not about a new drug or device. It was about people disappearing.

Key takeaways

• In a registry study of 157,246 glaucoma patients at 35 US practices, published October 16, 2026, 56.3 percent went more than 12 months without glaucoma follow-up care at their practice.
• Glaucoma causes no pain and no early symptoms, so a missed year of monitoring can let permanent damage build without anyone noticing.
• American Academy of Ophthalmology guidelines suggest no more than about 12 months between glaucoma evaluations, even when the disease is stable.
• If it has been more than a year since your last glaucoma check, St. Michael’s Eye & Laser Institute in Largo, Florida can pick up where your care left off, with monitoring, SLT laser, and minimally invasive glaucoma surgery all under one roof.

What the new data found

Researchers analyzing the Newton Registry reviewed 724,728 patient encounters involving more than 157,000 glaucoma patients across 35 US ophthalmology practices, covering January 2022 through November 2025. The results were published October 16, 2026, in the journal Ophthalmology and Therapy.

More than half of those patients, 56.3 percent, had a gap in their glaucoma care longer than 12 months. Not a missed appointment. A year or more without a visit to the practice managing their glaucoma. No pressure check on record, no measurement of whether the disease was holding steady or quietly advancing.

The study also found that only 12.2 percent of patients had any glaucoma procedure during the observation period, with laser treatment the most common by a wide margin. Worth noting for context: the registry behind this study is owned by a company that makes glaucoma devices, which is a reason to read the treatment-rate numbers carefully. The follow-up gap figure is harder to argue with, and it matches what practices see.

Why people with glaucoma fall out of care

Almost nobody decides to stop treating their glaucoma. It happens by accident, usually for ordinary reasons:

• Nothing feels wrong, so the visit never feels urgent, and it gets pushed to next month repeatedly
• The drops ran out, the refill lapsed, and calling about it kept slipping down the list
• A move, a snowbird season, or a change in insurance interrupted the schedule and it never restarted
• The practice changed hands or the doctor left, and the relationship did not carry over
• Another health problem took priority for a year, which is understandable and very common
• Embarrassment about having been away so long, which keeps people away longer

That last one is worth saying out loud. No one here is going to lecture you about a gap. We would rather see you late than not at all.

What glaucoma follow-up care actually involves

Glaucoma is managed, not cured. The goal is to keep the pressure inside your eye low enough that the optic nerve stops losing fibers. Because you cannot feel eye pressure and cannot perceive early nerve damage, the only way to know whether treatment is working is to measure it.

A typical follow-up visit checks the pressure, examines the optic nerve, and periodically repeats imaging and a visual field test so this year can be compared against last year. The comparison is the point. A single pressure reading tells you very little. A trend over several visits tells you whether the current plan is holding. You can read more about how we approach this on our glaucoma page, and about what a full workup includes on our eye exam page.

Treatment itself generally falls into three categories: daily pressure-lowering drops, in-office laser treatment, and surgical options that open up the eye’s natural drain or create a new one. Which combination is right depends on your pressure, your nerve, how fast things are changing, and how well you tolerate drops. That is a decision to make with your doctor rather than from an article. If you are weighing options, we have written about SLT laser versus daily drops and why so many people stop using their glaucoma drops.

Why continuity matters more here than almost anywhere else

Glaucoma management is a long comparison, and comparisons need a consistent reference point. When your records, your imaging, and your doctor all stay in one place for years, small changes stand out early. When care is scattered across practices and interrupted by gaps, those same changes hide in the noise.

St. Michael’s Eye & Laser Institute has been independent and family owned in Largo since 1961, which is not just history. It means the doctor who examined you three years ago is likely the one reading your scan today. It also means your glaucoma care stays in one place: drops and monitoring, in-office SLT laser, and, if you ever need it, minimally invasive glaucoma surgery (MIGS) in our AAAHC-accredited surgery center in the same building rather than a referral across the county.

Frequently asked questions

I have not been in for two years. Is it too late?

No. Vision already lost to glaucoma does not come back, but vision you still have can be protected. The sooner we measure where you are now, the sooner we know whether your old plan is still working or needs to change. Two years away is extremely common, and it is a reason to call, not a reason to wait longer.

How often should someone with glaucoma be checked?

It depends on how stable your glaucoma is, and your doctor sets the schedule. As a general guide, American Academy of Ophthalmology guidelines suggest no more than about 12 months between evaluations, and that is for people whose pressure has been at target with no sign of progression. When pressure is above target or the disease is changing, the recommended interval shrinks to every one to six months. A gap of more than a year is longer than the guidelines suggest for anyone.

My pressure was fine at my last visit. Do I still need to come back?

Yes. Eye pressure fluctuates through the day and over months, and some people lose nerve tissue even at pressures that look normal on paper. A good reading at one visit is reassuring, not conclusive. It is the pattern across visits that tells us whether the disease is controlled.

Does insurance cover glaucoma monitoring?

Glaucoma is a medical eye condition, so visits and testing are generally billed to medical insurance, including Medicare, rather than to a vision plan. Coverage specifics vary by plan. You can see the insurance plans we accept, and our staff can check your benefits before your visit if you would like to know what to expect.

Where can I get glaucoma care in Largo or Pinellas County?

St. Michael’s Eye & Laser Institute, at 1030 W Bay Drive, Suite 200, in Largo, has been family owned and independent since 1961 and sees patients from Largo, Clearwater, Seminole, St. Petersburg, and across Tampa Bay. Glaucoma patients here are seen by Dr. John Michaelos and Dr. Luis Ortiz, OD, and care covers pressure checks, optic nerve imaging, visual field testing, prescription drops, in-office SLT laser, and minimally invasive glaucoma surgery in our AAAHC-accredited surgery center on site. The practice is a Best of Florida 2026 winner.

If you have fallen behind, start here

If you have glaucoma or have been told you are a glaucoma suspect and it has been more than a year since anyone checked, make that appointment this week. If you are over 60, have a family history of glaucoma, or have never had a dilated exam, the same applies even without a diagnosis. Glaucoma is one of the conditions where showing up on schedule is most of the treatment.

To schedule, book online or call us at (727) 202-2020. Glaucoma patients here see Dr. John Michaelos or Dr. Luis Ortiz, OD, and cataract, LASIK, retina, and glaucoma care all happen under one roof, with Dr. Dana Deupree and Dr. Oren Plous covering retina. We have been caring for eyes in Largo and Pinellas County since 1961.