How to have meaningful conversations with patients about holistic management of their glaucoma
Melissa Ann Valdellon, OD, of UC Berkeley, shared highlights from her presentation at the American Academy of Optometry Annual Meeting, which addressed how to offer truly holistic glaucoma care without losing sight of the evidence.
Melissa Ann Valdellon, OD:
Hello, my name is Melissa Valdellon. I’m an optometrist with Alameda Health System, an adjunct assistant professor of health sciences with the Herbert Wertheim School of Optometry and Vision Science.
I had the honor of presenting the lecture, “Glaucoma and Integrative Care: Evidence-Based Nutrition, Lifestyle, and Strategies for Comprehensive Management.” Glaucoma is often described as a disease of the eye, but our patients don’t experience it that way. They live with glaucoma alongside aging, neurologic and systemic conditions, medications, lifestyle factors, and all of the other things that influence their health and quality of life. As clinicians, we’re increasingly asked questions about nutrition, vitamins, supplements, exercise, and other approaches that patients hope might help protect their vision. How do we provide truly holistic glaucoma care without losing sight of the evidence?
That was the focus of my lecture. We looked at what we actually know about lifestyle and nutritional factors in glaucoma, where the evidence is promising, where it remains limited or inconclusive, and how we can communicate that uncertainty honestly with our patients. We also considered how systemic and neurologic factors can intersect with glaucoma care and influence the way we think about treatment and patient counseling.
My goal was that we as practitioners left with a practical framework for having these conversations with your glaucoma patients, one that allows us to acknowledge the patient as a whole person, answer their questions thoughtfully and honestly, and make recommendations that are both compassionate and scientifically sound. Because holistic care and evidence-based care aren’t opposites, done well, they should be the same thing.
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