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 _i_!• o
 nerve withA_gqompanying impaired vision
 function, e_1
 Dr o Robert Hepler of UCLA defines glaucoma as man imbalance of
 pressure within the eye. _LQ// Untreated, inadequately treated_
 or improperly treated, the abnormally elevated ocular tension
 associated with glaucoma causes progressive injury to the optic
 disk and progressive destruction of the optic nerve. -4Q_/ The
 danger to the glaucoma patient is an irretrievable loss of his oF
 "_ her sight. _99-/
 Glaucoma is not a rare disorder. Two million
 Americans are afflicted with glaucomas of all types. -410/ At
 ....
 _Q_I /_o (quoting "Fact Sheet: Marijuana and Glaucoma H
 Statemen o Na °
 one Ins_._, National Institutes
 of Health, UoS® Public Health Servicer Washington, D°C._ August,
 1987_ at i.) 8@@ The Harvard Medical School Health Letter,
 describes glaucoma as Wan increase in pressure within the eyeball
 sufficient to damageothe optic nerve. N /_d. at I0 (quoting
 >
 • .... aUnderstanding Glaucoma: Preventing Silent Blindness, H
 _iarvard Medial e t_ Vol. IV_ No° 6, April,
 1979, at !°)
 _9.1/ Affidavit of Robert Randall_ Exhibit B, Affidavit of Robert
 S. Heplert M.Do, _ 2.
 iQ_/ Rebuttal Affidavit of Dr_ John Merritt, _ 7. Affidavit of
 Robert Hepler, Exhibit 2_ Statement by the American Academy of
 Ophtholmologyo mGlaucoma is a condition that is characterized
 by an intraocular pressure higher than the eye can tolerate_
 This pressure causes damage to the optic nerve and progressive
 loss of visual fields _
 409/ Rebuttal Affidavit of Dr. John Merritt_ _ 7.
 _Li_Q/ Although fig_/res are uncertain, in 1978 NEI reported that
 the number of glaucoma patients may be as high as two million
 Americans. ACT Official State Reports Vol. II_ Exhibit I0, New
 Jersey Glaucoma Protocol, at i0, (quoting _Fact Sheet: Marijuana
 & Glaucoma_ n Statemg__t fro e 'o Eve_, August
 16, 1978, at Io) UThe National Society for the Prevention of
 Blindness_ Into conservatively estimates that 2% of the adult
 population over the age of thirty_five [35] has glaucoma. /_d. at
 i0 (quoting #Estimated Cases of Glaucoma by State: 1983 u
 _
 N_onal Society for the _/_yg_J_qD__jL_l_/l_nes_).
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