Blindness from cataracts on the rise in Sudan

Ophthalmologists announced an increase of blindness in Sudan during a workshop in Khartoum on Saturday. The reason: it is impossible to reach the marginalised areas of the country to conduct cataract operations there.

Cataract is the main cause of blindness in Sudan. It most commonly affects adults as a result of ageing.

Cataract surgery involves replacing the cloudy lens inside an eye with an artificial one. Cataracts usually get slowly worse over time. Surgery to replace the cloudy lens is the only way to improve eyesight. The operation has a high success rate.

The Sudanese ophthalmologists said that there are patients who cannot cover the costs of the operations because of poverty or don’t know they can be treated.

The ophthalmologists pointed out that there are no eye hospitals in several states. Most eye operations and eye treatment are concentrated in Khartoum and the state capitals.

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