A Consultant Ophthalmologist at Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital (AKTH), Dr. Zayyad Farouq, is dismayed that many Nigerians are ignorantly losing their sight to glaucoma.
Dr. Farouq disclosed this during a free eye screening exercise organized by the Ophthalmological Society of Nigeria (OSN), in collaboration with AKTH’s Department of Ophthalmology to mark this year's World Glaucoma Week.
World Glaucoma Week (WGW) is an annual commemoration that spotlights glaucoma (a group of eye diseases that damages the optic nerve).
It is the leading cause of preventable and irreversible blindness worldwide. This year’s theme is “Uniting for a Glaucoma-Free World”.
Glaucoma is an eye disorder that causes visual impairment as a result of its effect on the optical nerves that take pictures from the eye to the brain due to what is known as Intraocular Pressure.
8.4 Million People Blinded by Glaucoma
According to the Glaucoma Research Foundation, 8.4 million individuals worldwide are blind from primary open-angle glaucoma.
The foundation estimates that the number could increase to 22 million by 2040.
Back home, data from the Nigeria National Blindness and Impairment Survey shows that one in every 20 Nigerians aged 40 years and above has glaucoma, and five of them incur irreversible blindness.
At the Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital alone, doctors see at least 200 glaucoma patients every week.
Dr. Farouq says the people most at risk of developing glaucoma are individuals over 60, including people with a family history of the disease and individuals of African and Hispanic descent.
He’s unhappy that half of the people with glaucoma are unaware that they are affected, stressing the need for “regular comprehensive eye exams to catch symptoms early stage.”
OSN, AKTH Screens Over 1,000 Staff Members for Glaucoma
To mark World Glaucoma, OSN and AKTH’s ophthalmology department sensitized health workers and staff of the hospital on the importance of early detection of glaucoma.
The sensitization featured health talks with a focus on halting avoidable blindness through regular eye tests which is the only way to detect ‘symptomless’ glaucoma early.
After the sensitization, free eye screening exercises were conducted for over a thousand staff of AKTH and the College of Health Sciences of the Bayero University Kano (BUK).
The Assistant Secretary-General of the Ophthalmological Society of Nigeria (OSN), Kano Chapter, Dr. Maryam Abdullahi said eye screening is necessary to halt blindness caused by glaucoma.
Dr. Maryam, a Consultant Ophthalmologist at AKTH, disclosed that “free treatment would be carried on any staff who has glaucoma,” adding that glasses and eye drops will also be given to the affected staff.
She identified late presentation by patients as a major challenge faced by the department, stressing the need for “regular eye test.”
Hajiya Safiya, one of the staff of the hospital was given glasses after she was screened.
Safiya said she has been short-sighted for years, and applauded the hospital and association for her glasses.
