‘2 million Pakistanis living with eye-related diseases’

Experts say 80% of them can be cured through intervention

ISLAMABAD:

Pakistan currently has around two million eye patients and timely intervention can avert 80% of all kinds of eye-related diseases. This was said by Al-Shifa Trust President General (retd) Rehmat Khan as he spoke to raise awareness on the issue.

According to World Health Organisation, 2.2 billion people around the world live with vision impairment or blindness of which one billion people have conditions that could have been prevented, he maintained.

He lamented the lack of required facilities for eye care and said World Sight Day was a global event meant to draw attention to blindness and vision impairment.

Rehmat Khan said that we need to accelerate efforts to ensure that everyone, everywhere has equitable access to high-quality and comprehensive eye health services.

He went on to say that Al-Shifa Trust was trying its best to serve as many patients as possible with a focus on children. He said that we have organised awareness talks and hospital activities in this regard.

Senior Consultant and HOD Orbit and Oculoplastics at Al-Shifa, Prof Tayyab Afghani also shed light on the need to raise awarenessabout eye care in various age groups. He informed that the prevalence of blindness in Pakistan is mostly related to an increase in population and delays on the part of patients and their families to consult a doctor.

The ophthalmologists in the awareness session advised the parents to ensure timely eye checkups of their kids. If a child complains of headaches and watery eyes, there is a high likelihood that he suffers from poor eyesight, he maintained.

Parents must not delay consultations with a pediatric eye specialist. The doctors also highlighted the effects of diabetes on the eyes and advised patients to have their eye checkups by vitreo-retina specialists.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 17^th, 2022.