For World Sight Day, new app available for Canadians living with glaucoma, the Silent Thief of Sight

ABBVie (NYSE: ABBV) and Fighting Blindness Canada have launched the Glaucoma in Perspective (GiP) app to help Canadians understand the impact of glaucoma and manage disease progression. The launch of GiP coincides with World Sight Day, as the vision loss community comes together to raise awareness and understanding of eye diseases like glaucoma.

GiP was developed based on research and insights into patients' perception of sight loss with glaucoma. The app provides users with guidance on treatment regimen and includes a series of interactive demonstrations to encourage at-risk individuals to seek early intervention from a healthcare professional by allowing them to experience the impact of glaucoma on everyday situations. It also provides information on available treatment options to support glaucoma management.

The GiP app is now available at the Apple Store and Google Play for free download.

"Fighting Blindness Canada is proud to support the launch of Glaucoma in Perspective in Canada . It's an exciting opportunity to launch a new and innovative digital tool that can be easily accessible and help Canadians stay empowered in managing this disease," says Doug Earle , President and CEO of Fighting Blindness Canada. "We are hopeful that the Glaucoma in Perspective app will help both patients and caregivers in understanding the complexities of glaucoma and provide valuable information to support the patient journey."

Glaucoma affects more than 728,000 Canadians and takes the form of several related disease types, the most common being open angle glaucoma. ¹ Glaucoma is characterized by a build-up of aqueous humour fluid and increased intraocular pressure (IOP) that damages the optic nerve. ² There is no cure for glaucoma, but early detection and treatment can help prevent damage to the optic nerve, and as a result, save vision. ³

"Glaucoma is often known as the silent thief of sight and can often go undetected if there are no early symptoms. The goal of Glaucoma in Perspective is to provide a user-friendly experience for patients and caregivers to enhance their knowledge and understanding of glaucoma to better support their needs," says Professor David Crabb , GiP app developer and Professor of Statistics and Vision Research, City, University of London . "My hope is that Canadians will now have access to a digital tool that will help them take more control of their glaucoma and aid them in understanding the condition."

In a national survey of 150 respondents with glaucoma, 69% of respondents didn't know what type of glaucoma they have. 65% of respondents relied on their doctor's office for new resources and information to support their glaucoma knowledge while 39% search online. ⁴

"At AbbVie, we continue to explore new and improved ways of enhancing glaucoma care for patients. While there is no cure for glaucoma, we remain dedicated to ensuring that patients have access to available resources like Glaucoma in Perspective to support their health and wellbeing," says Tracey Ramsay , Vice President and General Manager, AbbVie Canada. "We will continue to work collaboratively with key partners, such as Fighting Blindness Canada, to address the unmet needs in glaucoma care and help bring innovative solutions that bring meaningful impact for Canadians."

Fighting Blindness Canada (FBC) is Canada's leading charitable funder of vision research. FBC offers hope to Canadians by identifying the best, most promising research that is driving treatments and cures for blinding eye diseases. Over our 45-year history, FBC has invested over $40 million to support vision research and education across Canada: that's over 200 research grants that have led to over 600 new discoveries understanding why vision loss occurs, how it can be slowed or stopped, and how sight can be restored. For more information, please visit www.FightingBlindness.ca .

AbbVie's mission is to discover and deliver innovative medicines that solve serious health issues today and address the medical challenges of tomorrow. We strive to have a remarkable impact on people's lives across several key therapeutic areas: immunology, oncology, neuroscience, eye care, virology, women's health and gastroenterology, in addition to products and services across its Allergan Aesthetics portfolio. For more information about AbbVie, please visit us at www.abbvie.ca . Follow @abbviecanada on Twitter and Instagram , or find us on LinkedIn.

SOURCE AbbVie Canada

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