Screening ongoing at Rotary Club of Palmgrove Estate for free cataract surgery

Screening of patients with cataract, glaucoma and pterygium has continued at the Rotary Club of Lagos Palmgrove Estate ahead of the free 1,500 eye surgeries to be carried out on those with cataract while glasses would be given to those who simply need glasses to correct their eyesight.

Speaking at the 1, Dalberto Road, Palmgrove Estate, where the screening has been ongoing, president of the Club, Ramesh Biswal, said the programme was aimed at assisting those who can’t bear the cost of surgery in removing cataract from their eyes.

“Today, we had well over 300 who came for the screening while another screening comes up on May 16. The final screening takes place on May 24, while surgery commences May 25 at General Hospital, Lagos.

The team to carry out the surgery from India would be arriving next week. “We are yet to get the required number of patients to benefit from the free cataract surgery and we are using this avenue to tell those having cataract to make themselves available for screening within the few days set aside for the exercise so that they can benefit from the programme,” he said.

One of the doctors carrying out the screening, Dr. Aduke Odutayo, said it was discovered that a lot of patients who turned up for screening were infected with cataract.

“There are other issues like glaucoma and pterygium, which are other common causes of blindness. “Cataract for the aged is a common phenomenon just like grey hair.

Outside that, other causes of cataract among the aged are systemic condition and trauma to the eye, though a lot of what we have seen here is as a result of normal ageing process and when they are corrected through surgery, the results are usually good. “Some children are born with cataract and we have seen two examples that would be corrected through surgery.

Childhood cataract within the ages of 10 and 12 can be caused by trauma and secondly injury to the eye. “Causes are also traceable to our people using traditional therapy by putting sugar, urine, battery water, onion among others in their eyes, which in most cases compound the problem and destroy the eye structure.

The victims indulge in these because of lack of health education. One of the beneficiaries, Mrs. Victoria Omoniyi, aged 53, expressed appreciation to the club for their unquantifiable service to humanity.