India, a nation recognized for its resilience and progress, is burdened by a preventable blindness disaster. Over 85% of its blind residents might have seen the sunshine if early measures had been taken.
“Almost 85 p.c of blindness on the earth is avoidable which might both be preventable or treatable,” Dr. Rajesh Sinha, Professor, Dept. of Ophthalmology, AIIMS New Delhi mentioned.
The knowledgeable referred to as the necessity for public consciousness so {that a} majority of individuals within the society who might turn out to be blind attributable to ignorance keep their sight for all times. “Ocular causes of preventable blindness may be infections, vitamin A deficiency whereas causes of treatable blindness may be cataract, uncorrected refractive error, diabetic retinopathy,” Sinha mentioned.
Cataracts Stay the Major Reason behind Blindness in India
In accordance with the Nationwide Blindness and Visible Impairment Survey, cataract is the main reason for blindness, accounting for 66.2 p.c of all instances of blindness in India. Uncorrected refractive errors account for 18.6 p.c, and glaucoma for six.7 p.c. Different causes of blindness and imaginative and prescient impairment embody corneal opacities (0.9 p.c), childhood blindness (1.7 p.c), and diabetic retinopathy (3.3 p.c).
“It is very important unfold consciousness round preventable blindness as a result of greater than 85 p.c of the blindness is preventable if solely individuals know easy methods to deal with them,” mentioned Dr. Ikeda Lal, Senior Cornea, Cataract and Refractory Surgical procedure Specialist, at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital New Delhi.
The frequent causes for blindness in India embody cataract, glaucoma, macular degeneration, uncorrected refractive error, and corneal blindness. Diabetic retinopathy is one other essential purpose for blindness in India, particularly contemplating the excessive prevalence of diabetes within the nation, Lal mentioned. The consultants advocated the necessity for early screenings to detect eye issues and stop imaginative and prescient loss.
Supply-IANS