By Dr. Gaurav Arora, DOMS Dnb FERC, Regional Medical Head, Dr. Agarwal’s Eye hospital Hyderabad

It is common to think that seeing well is synonymous with having healthy eyes. However, there are various reasons that can affect visual health more than is believed. Swiss Medical Center, says that in the world, 285 million people have some type of visual disability. That’s why the World Health Organization established World Sight Day on the second Thursday of every year. It is essential to raise awareness about the importance of vision screening, even in those people who do not have symptoms. According to the medical center approximately 80% of cases of visual impairment could be prevented.

Dr. Gaurav Arora shared, “In the coming years, our focus should be on reversible causes that can help reduce blindness. Massive drive for eye donations, periodic eye examination by Opthalmologist and awareness for early diagnosis and treatment will help us achieve our goals in providing vision to people across the country.”

In the case of vision, the patient may believe that seeing well is synonymous with being completely healthy, but some pathologies do not present symptoms and can lead to the development of irreversible eyes illnesses, both in children and adults.

The most frequent case in children occurs when they develop amblyopia, a condition in which the brain favors the development and stimulation of the nerve pathways of the healthy eye. In the case of adults, an example of these pathologies is elevated ocular pressure, which often develops after the age of 40.

When perceiving a decrease in vision, it is essential to go to an ophthalmologist and check yourself for:

1. Non-operating cataracts
2. Refractive errors (myopia, hypermetropia or astigmatism)
3. Diabetes

In the case of adults over 50, the primary cause of visual disability is cataracts, whose treatment consists of an ambulatory operation, with local anesthesia, which lasts 15 minutes. Worldwide, it is the most frequent surgical procedure.

The complete eye examination for both adults and children is a simple procedure that consists of an eye examination, measurement of eye pressure, visual acuity testing, and on.