NATIONAL EYE DONATION AWARENESS FORTNIGHT
25 AUGUST to 8 SEPTEMBER
India
has the largest burden of global blindness. A considerable number of Indians
suffer from significant impairment of vision that threatens their ability to be
physically or financially self-sufficient. The cumulative loss to the country’s
gross national product consequent to this is estimated to be $11.1 billion.
While the problem is formidable, the need to take up the challenge of curtailing
it is compelling.
Some
27 million Indians have moderate sight impairment; nine million are classified
as bilateral blind; 260,000 children are blind. The number of corneal blind
people in India is 4.6 million. Of these, 90 per cent are below 45. They include
60 per cent who are below 12 years of age. Looking at the root causes, 66 per
cent of the cases are preventable or curable. Out of the 4.6 million people, at
least three million can benefit from corneal transplantation.
Donated
human eyes help preserve and restore sight through corneal transplantation,
research and education. More than 90 per cent of corneal transplant operations
successfully restore vision in people suffering from blindness due to corneal
problems. Infants born with cloudy corneas gain sight from transplantation.
Eye
banks obtain, evaluate and distribute eyes donated by humanitarian-minded
citizens for use in corneal transplantation, research and education. To ensure
patient safety, the donated eyes are evaluated under strict medical standards.
Donated eyes that are not suitable for corneal transplantation are used for
valuable research and education purposes.
The cornea is the clear,
transparent dome in front of the “black portion” of the eye. It is also the
main focusing surface, which converges light rays as they enter the eye to
focus on the retina. It is thus the most important part of the optical
apparatus of the eye. Loss of transparency directly results in loss of vision.
A corneal transplant is an
operation that replaces the opaque cornea with a clear cornea obtained from a
human donor eye. A cornea may become opaque owing to infection, injuries,
iatrogenic causes such as malpractice and improper post-operative care,
malnutrition, or congenital-hereditary reasons.
Practically anybody from the
age of one can be an eye donor. There is no maximum age limit. Poor eyesight
and age make no difference. Those who wear spectacles, those who have had
cataract surgery, diabetics and those who are hypertensive can donate eyes. Even
a person who is blind from retinal or optic nerve disease can donate eyes,
provided the cornea is clear. Those who have died of unknown causes or due to
infectious rabies, syphilis, infectious hepatitis, septicemia, and AIDS cannot
be donors.
One can bequeath eyes by
taking a pledge, resolving to donate them after death. But it requires the help
of relatives or friends to carry out the pledge and desire. The next-of-kin can
give consent for a donation even if the deceased family member has not signed a
pledge form.
The eyes need to be
collected within six hours, and so the eye bank has to be called as early as
possible. After making the call, both eyes will need to be closed and covered
with moist cotton. Any overhead fans should be turned off. If possible,
antibiotic eye drops may be periodically instilled in the eyes in order to
reduce chances of infection. The head end of the body could be kept raised by
about 6 inches in order to reduce any bleeding during eye removal.
The removal will leave no visible
signs that would interfere with common funeral arrangements and practices.
There is no religious conflict involved. The donation actually gives a gift of
life or sight to others. As such, it is consistent with the beliefs and
attitudes of all major religious and ethical traditions.
The whole eye cannot be
transplanted, only the cornea can be. The rest of the eye is used for
therapeutic use, research and education. The ultimate decision about usage for
transplantation will be made after evaluation.
A living person cannot
donate eyes. A recipient is not told who donated the eye: the gift of sight is
made anonymously.
At the eye bank, the donor
corneas are strictly evaluated by means of various procedures including slit
lamp examination, serology examination, and secular’s microscopic evaluation by
specialists. The chosen corneas are removed from the eyeball and preserved in
special storage solutions that can keep the cornea healthy for 14 days. Good
quality corneas are used for corneal transplant procedures. The donor corneas
are used for various types of keratoplasty procedures including multiple
procedures. The donor sclera is preserved in absolute alcohol and used for
surgical procedures concerning glaucoma, ocular trauma and oculoplasty.
The remaining parts of the
donor eye ball are used for research by the research units of Microbiology,
Biochemistry, Ocular Pathology, and Molecular Biology.
The following steps will aid
the noble cause. Dial the eye bank of any hospital soon after the unfortunate
death of a near and dear one. Give your consent to donate the eyes of your
close relatives and friends. You can also pledge for eye donation before death
and get your donor card by just contact eye banks or well known NGO for eye
donation named ‘DEED-NY-DEEDAR’ (09988229909). Motivate the family members of
anyone who has died in your area. Spread information about eye care and eye
donation.
The Department of Ophthalmology
of various hospitals frequently organizes public health education programmes in
schools, colleges, and industrial establishments in collaboration with
non-governmental organizations, where issues relating to eye care and eye
donation are explained. After you die, donate your eye because miracles cannot
cure the blind, but you can and make yourself a friend of the eye bank.
Deed-ny-Deedar
(NGO)
www.deednydeedar.yolasite.com
www.facebook.com/donateureye
deednydeedar@gmail.com
+91-9988229909
