• Expert urges Nigerians to go for early eye test
A former Chairman of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), Edo State Branch, Prof. Afekhide Omoti, yesterday, called on the Federal Government to address the ravaging effect of glaucoma ailments in the country, saying eight in 100 Nigerians over the age of 40 suffer from glaucoma.
According to the don, glaucoma is the world’s second leading cause of blindness after cataracts.
Omoti, who is also the Chairman of the National Eye Health Committee of the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, and the Chairman of the Eye Health Committee of the Nigerian Medical Association, disclosed this to newsmen in Benin as part of activities to commemorate the 2025 World Glaucoma Week with the theme, “Uniting for a Glaucoma-free World.”
The Professor of Ophthalmology said that globally, there are about 78 million people diagnosed with glaucoma, adding that the number is projected to rise to 95.4 million by 2030 and 111.8 million by 2040.
He expressed worry over the surge in the ailment in the country, noting that this has made it a growing public health concern.
Omoti said: “In Nigeria, it is more common in older people, in men, and in the Igbo ethnic group. As much as 5.02 per cent of Nigerians have glaucoma and up to 16.7 per cent of blindness in Nigeria is due to glaucoma.”
MEANWHILE, the Delta State Ministry of Health focal person on the eye health programme, Dr Gloria Mok, has urged Nigerians to go for early eye tests, saying: “Early detection is key to better management of glaucoma.”
Addressing journalists yesterday on 2025 Glaucoma Week, Dr Mok said that the week-long programme “is to raise awareness of the importance of early detection, prevention, and treatment of glaucoma, a leading cause of blindness globally.
Dr Mok disclosed that the state government via the Ministry of Health, in collaboration with the World Health Organisation (WHO), had embarked on a free eye screening test to mark the 2025 Glaucoma Week, because of the importance and the issues around glaucoma affecting the country and the world.
The State Secretary of the Opthalmology Society of Nigeria, Dr Ugochukwu Eze, told The Guardian that the irreversible nature of blindness from glaucoma made it pertinent to raise awareness about the importance of regular eye checks for early detection and prompt treatment.
