60K eye surgeries conducted

ZIMBABWE is burdened with a high number of cataract-induced blindness and to tackle the issue, the country has conducted over 60 000 surgeries annually, according to Dr Boniface Macheka, the Government’s chief ophthalmologist.

Rapid assessments of avoidable blindness carried out between 2016 and 2020 in Manicaland, Masvingo, Matabeleland South and Midlands showed that up to 65 percent of adults suffering from blindness in those four provinces were affected by cataracts.

The Bright Journey programme, launched to address the backlog of surgeries and promote awareness of surgical services, is expected to boost access to treatment.

“For planning purposes, we can make projections to say of those adults with cataracts or poor vision over the age of 50, the majority of them will have poor vision due to untreated cataracts.

“In those four provinces, we found that an average of about 65 percent of those who were blind from various causes, were blind due to cataracts and we are looking at up to 70 000 people using the last population census,” said Dr Macheka.

The Bright Journey programme will utilise 10 ophthalmologists alongside a Chinese team.

“It will be a small drop in the ocean, but it’s a beginning as it will raise awareness among our people to say there is a solution to blindness from cataracts. One of the reasons for people not accessing these services was lack of knowledge and fear, among other reasons.

“We can also have cataracts in children and these ones are usually born with them. Some are as a result of trauma or injuries, some are as result of bad genes and some are hereditary,” he said.

Cataract is clouding of the eye’s natural lens which is behind the iris and the pupil which results in the eyes experiencing a hazy and blurred vision.