COVID Fear Rising The Cases
Of Preventable Blindness
Since
the inception of the COVID 19 pandemic, it has become a major hindrance factor
in the treatment module for other health ailments and eye care is no exception.
Patients suffering from cataract and glaucoma have been refraining from any
surgical intervention amid the infection risk and the numbers have dropped over
90%.
Lockdown has posed a
major setback for patients seeking treatment for various eye related ailments,
devoid of which many have lost their vision permanently. While the guidelines
have been issued by the Government of India to allow elective and emergency
surgeries in ophthalmology, following the due safety measures, the turn out
rates have come down significantly. At this pace a greater number of people
with pre-existing eye problems are bound to lose their vision, partially or
completely.
While as per the
earlier guidelines, ophthalmologists were undertaking only emergency surgical
procedures, the new guidelines now suggest them to perform elective surgeries
with due precautions. Keeping in view the significant possibility of increase
in number of patients who suffer from cataract and blindness due to cataract
and other eye diseases, these elective surgeries have been started with proper
safety measures.
“Cataract surgery is the most frequently performed
surgery among surgeries performed on any part of the human body, even more
frequent than heart surgery. Patients in the need of the surgery have refrained
from getting it done amidst the fear of COVID 19. With vision becoming
increasingly blurred as cataract progresses, it can take a toll on your life by
hindering simple day to day activities. Timely treatment for cataract assists
in improving and restoring the vision with better quality of life.” Said
Prof. (Dr) Mahipal Singh Sachdev, President AIOS & Chairman, Centre For
Sight Group of Hospitals.
According to National
Health Portal India survey 2017, it is the leading cause of irreversible blindness
with estimated cases around 18 lakh. Though the average age for prevalence of
glaucoma is over 50 years, but with sedentary lifestyle and westernization, the
average age is getting shorter. Moreover it has recently been observed that of
the total cases diagnosed with the condition, over 70% of them are under the
age of 35 years.
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