In an effort to raise awareness about preventable blindness, District Hospital Dimapur (DHD) observed 39th National Fortnight on eye donation campaign, at DHD conference hall on Saturday.
This year’s programme aims to increase awareness about eye health and tackle the rising problem of blindness in India, where special attention was being given to doctors, while next year’s campaign set to target nurses.
Speaking at the programme, senior eye specialist at DHD, Dr. Asonla Aying, cited that according to 2023 estimates, there are approximately 37 million blind people worldwide, with 10 million residing in India, out of these, 2 million are affected by corneal blindness.
Alarmingly, 2 million of these cases involve children, with common causes including eye injuries, vitamin A deficiency, and the use of traditional medicine, which poses a significant risk factor for blindness.
She also informed about the dangers of using traditional remedies like using of mother’s milk and urine. She informed that in order to address the issue, the Eye Bank Association of India has introduced a hospital corneal retrieval program focused on corneal harvesting to bridge the gap between demand and supply.
Each year, approximately 150,000 corneas are needed, but only 30,000 are collected. The initiative aims to improve access by enabling any government, private, or charitable hospital with an ICU, surgical ward, or eye department to participate in the program.
Dr. Aying stated that in Nagaland, the public is sensitised through collaborations with organizations like the Rotary Club. The first corneal harvest in the region was performed on November 21, 2012 from a Marwari family. Despite the absence of an eye bank, the program has successfully harvested 16 corneas and sent them to Guwahati for transplantation.
Increased awareness and participation in the program could lead to more successful corneal harvests and transplants across the country and added that with the hospital corneal retrieval programme collection, 35% successful corneal transplant is progressing in India.
Dr. Aying further encouraged the hospitals and public to participate in this program, which would significantly benefit the public by enhancing access to eye donation after the death of a loved one to give sight to another blind person.