The eye conditions men are more likely to get, and how the exam may catch them earlier

Family first, health second, a visit to the doctor nowhere in sight 

Each June, Men’s Health Month draws attention to the importance of preventive care for men. But the need doesn’t end when the month does. 

For many men, a routine exam is easy to keep putting off. The habit can seem harmless; however, the consequences of avoiding the care may not be.

Men today are juggling work, family and household responsibilities, and for many, doctors’ visits seem to keep getting delayed. 

National data points in the same direction. In 2024, men were less likely than women to have a regular place they go for care. About 73% of men reported using a doctor’s office or health center, compared with 82% of women. Men were more likely to rely on a hospital emergency room instead of a primary care physician. For conditions that show no early symptoms, that gap in comprehensive annual care is where problems start to appear.

Men know their health is a priority. So why do so many skip the basics, like a comprehensive eye exam? 

Some may not know that several serious eye conditions cause no symptoms in their early stages. A dilated eye exam, in which drops widen the pupils so a doctor can see the back of the eye clearly, can catch vision-threatening diseases early. This is why a comprehensive eye exam is a critical part of preventive care. It lets eye doctors detect eye conditions while they are more manageable. 

Diabetic eye disease

Diabetes is one of the biggest drivers of vision loss in adults, and men are diagnosed with diabetes at higher rates than women, about 13% compared with roughly 10%. 

The elevated risk is compounded in the eyes. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that men have a higher rate of diabetic eye disease, known as diabetic retinopathy, than women. Among U.S. adults with diabetes, roughly 28% of men have some diabetic retinopathy, compared with about 24% of women. They are at higher risk for vision-threatening cases of the disease as well.

Diabetic retinopathy

Diabetic retinopathy develops when sustained high blood sugar damages the small blood vessels that supply the retina. Left unmanaged, more than half of people with diabetes will eventually develop some degree of it. Affected vessels may swell, leak fluid or are replaced by fragile new vessels that bleed easily. 

In its early stages, diabetic retinopathy often causes no noticeable symptoms. The longer someone has lived with diabetes, the greater the risk of complications. Having high blood pressure or high cholesterol alongside diabetes increases the risk of eye damage further. Managing all three can help lower this risk or slow the progression of diabetic retinopathy. 

Diabetic retinopathy can also lead to a sight-threatening complication called retinal detachment. In diabetes, this is typically a tractional detachment, in which scar tissue from abnormal blood vessels pulls the retina, the light-sensitive tissue at the back of the eye, out of place. This condition is more common in people over 40 and affects men more than women. Symptoms of this medical emergency include flashes of light, a sudden onset of floaters or a dark shadow over vision.

Glaucoma

Glaucoma is a group of conditions that damage the optic nerve, which connects the eye to the brain. It is one of the leading causes of irreversible blindness worldwide. Roughly half the people who have it don’t know it because early glaucoma produces no symptoms.

The most prevalent form, open-angle glaucoma, is typically more common in men. Research shows men develop this form of glaucoma at a higher rate than women, about 30% more often. Vision loss tends to be gradual and begins at the periphery, so the damage can go unnoticed until it’s significant. Once that vision is gone, it doesn’t come back.

In many people, the damage is associated with high pressure inside the eye, though not always. Treatment can help prevent further damage, but it cannot reverse what has already happened. A comprehensive eye exam can catch glaucoma risk early before vision loss occurs. 

Other glaucoma risk factors

Current data shows men and women share similar risk factors for glaucoma; so for men making a checklist, this one should be on it. People over 60 face a higher risk, particularly Hispanic and Latino adults. For Black Americans, the elevated risk begins at 40. 

Those with a family history of glaucoma should get a comprehensive dilated eye exam every one to two years. This is important, even for those without symptoms, since family history is one of the more reliable predictors available.

When glaucoma is an emergency

One form of glaucoma, angle-closure glaucoma, is a medical emergency. It is a condition in which the eye’s fluid drainage angle becomes blocked. Sudden intense eye pain, nausea, eye redness or abrupt blurry vision are the warning signs, and anyone experiencing them should go to an eye doctor or emergency room right away. 

Central serous chorioretinopathy

Central serous chorioretinopathy occurs when fluid collects beneath the retina, creating a small pocket of separation under the macula. This is the area of the retina that is responsible for sharp, detailed vision. 

Men are roughly twice as likely to develop the condition as women, although the reason is not fully understood. They also tend to develop it at a younger age, typically between 20 and 45 years old. 

The most common symptom is blurry or dim central vision, usually in one eye, though careful examination often finds some involvement in the other eye as well. Straight lines may appear wavy, and objects can look smaller or farther away than they should. 

Corticosteroids, whether taken by mouth, injected or applied via nasal sprays or skin creams, are the most commonly reported triggers.

There appears to be a connection to emotional stress, too, possibly because the body’s own stress hormones can mimic the effect of corticosteroids in someone already prone to the condition. High blood pressure and heart disease are also associated with a higher risk.

Vision usually improves within a few weeks to a few months without any treatment. Those who have symptoms that persist beyond a few months will need treatment as recommended by their eye doctor.

Eye injuries

Men are more likely to get eye injuries than women. Every day, thousands of workers in the United States sustain job-related eye injuries serious enough to require medical treatment, and men account for three out of four of those cases, according to a recent national study. 

Many injuries happen when dust, wood chips and similar debris are ejected by tools or carried by the wind and strike the eye. Sharper objects, like nails or slivers of metal, can penetrate the eye and cause permanent vision loss. Serious injuries from chemical or thermal burns are risks in industrial and welding settings.

The risk doesn’t end when the workday does. Nearly half of all eye injuries happen at home, split almost evenly between household tasks like yard work, repairs and cooking and recreational activities like sports. 

Workplace and home injuries share a pattern. Nearly 80% of people injured weren’t wearing any eyewear at the time. Only about one in 20 of those wearing some type of eyewear were wearing safety or sports glasses. A pair of properly fitted safety glasses or goggles, suited to the task, can substantially lower that risk whether the job is on a construction site or in the garage. 

Serious eye injuries can also raise the risk of retinal detachment. The longer it goes untreated, the greater the risk that vision loss becomes permanent. 

Inherited color vision deficiency

If a man shows up to his doctor’s appointment in a green shirt and brown pants that don’t quite match, there might be a reason beyond a poor sense of fashion. Color vision deficiency, often called color blindness, makes it hard to distinguish certain colors, and it affects men far more than women.

It isn’t a disease, and it doesn’t get worse over time. Present from birth, it’s a fairly common inherited condition that affects how some colors look.

About 8% of white men are born with some degree of color deficiency, compared with about 0.5% of women. A recent global analysis found a similar pattern worldwide. Color vision deficiency affects about 4.4% of men, compared with about 0.6% of women.

The genes responsible for the most common form, which make it difficult to distinguish red from green, are on the X chromosome. Men have only one X chromosome, so a single altered gene is enough to cause the condition. Women have two X chromosomes. That’s why women are typically just carriers of the color-deficient gene rather than being affected by it themselves.

One of the simplest ways men can protect their vision

While color deficiency can complicate certain tasks that depend on color cues, it’s typically harmless. It can, however, affect eligibility for a few occupations that carry color vision standards, such as commercial aviation, certain electrical and transportation trades, and some military roles.

But undetected eye diseases, such as glaucoma and diabetic retinopathy, are anything but harmless. Early vision symptoms can be minimal enough to go unnoticed. Vision can seem perfectly normal, even as the condition progresses, and the risk typically rises with age.

Since men rank health as a priority, booking a comprehensive eye exam is one of the simplest ways to act, whether they schedule it or someone does it for them.