[ASSESSMENT OF QUALITY OF LIFE IN GLAUCOMA PATIENTS]

Glaucoma is a chronic, asymptomatic disorder which affects 2% of the population over 40 years of age. Glaucoma causes a significant vision impairment with the consequences on daily activities of patients which affect negatively their quality of life (QoL). The purpose of this paper is to give a review of instruments used in the QoL assessments of glaucoma patients and methods of performance based assessment of visual function in glaucoma in daily life. The PubMed was searched for the relevant literature. Thirteen quality of life scores used in glaucoma patients, method of performance-based assessments of the ability to carry out daily activities, and three utility measures were investigated. Despite the fact that there are no ideal instruments for the assessment of QoL of glaucoma patients, it should be incorporated in the plan of glaucoma patients treatment because of multiple benefits in optimizing the plan of treatment, education of the patients, the patients’ self satisfaction, and in the reduction of financial burden of the health care system. The Glaucoma Quality of Life (GQL-15) score is acceptable in clinical practice due to its shortness and implementation.