Sharp Sight Eye Hospital Srinagar, which aims to reach out to unchartered areas and fight childhood blindness from congenital cataracts, has commenced its mission of ‘Vision 2020: The Right to Sight’, a global initiative aimed at reducing the world’s burden of avoidable blindness.
“We understand that infants and toddlers, who cannot speak, need extra attention and therefore, at our Srinagar hospital, we have a separate pediatric wing to look into the congenital and developmental eye problems prevalent among children,” said eminent eye specialist from New Delhi Dr Samir Sud.
Citing case of Bazila Khursheed, a one-year-old infant, who had cataract, and was visually impaired, Dr Sud said: “on examining Bazila’s condition at Sharp Sight Eye Hospital, Srinagar, it was found that her blindness is caused due to congenital cataract.”
According to statement by the hospital, Bazila was operated and her cataract-ridden lenses were removed and she is visually fine and can see everything.
“Today, with modern pediatric anesthesia and microsurgical techniques, the risks associated with cataract surgery of children are definitely low. Any delay in treatment for cataract at birth may end up a child with a blind eye and strabismus,” said the statement.