BY GORDI UDEAJAH
Fall-outs from the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd Foundation ( NNPC) sponsored and Abia State government-partnered week-long 1,000 Free Cataract Extracted Surgery Outreach ( Outreach) in Abia state has elicited the consequences of Cataract and the pro-active measures to prevent it and treat the victims.
Cataract is said to be preventable and treated if diagnosed and the victim goes to professional medical facility and professional for the treatment.
The fall-outs include that Cataract is both preventable and treatable from early diagnosis, Cataract accounts for about 50 million cases of blindness globally and 43 % of the Nigerian cases, three under ten children that were congenital of it and that details of how and why may be ascertained during/ after the undergo surgery.
Other fall-outs were that the outreach aligned with the state governor, Dr Alex Otti’s vision of providing quality healthcare to the state citizenry and his openness to partner and collaborate with local, national and international groups in this regard,
including calls for wider holding of the Outreach annually in the state especially in the rural communities.
The Outreach which commenced with a state-wide sensitization campaigns three days to the scheduled Surgeries began on Wednesday, 9, April simultaneously at Abia Specialist Hospital and Madonna Catholic Hospital both in Umuahia, and the General Hospital Aba.
Earlier, during the public screening of persons with impaired sight that lasted from March 31 to 5th April 2025, out of the 2116 that reported, 1,339 were screened at Aba with 477 booked for surgery.
Among the screened persons were three under ten children congenitally born but not of same parents.
” The leading causes of congenital blindness worldwide are genetic mutations and congenital abnormalities, which in some cases, are preventable factors, such as infections during pregnancy”.
It was gathered that immatured Cataracts were in the majority of those diagnosed, others with suspected Glaucoma and Pterguim Refractive errors.
There were also cases of Couching ( treatment by Quacks) which resulted to most of them having irreversible blindness.
” There was a particular case of a woman who believed she was receiving treatment but got blind in both eyes under a wayside healer ( Coucher).
” Consequently, patients were counselled against engaging Couchers but to go early for treatment at appropriate Centers while steps are being taken to locate the Couchers”.
Speaking during the Surgeries flagg off, the NNPC Foundation Managing Director Mrs Immanuella Arukwe said the goal of the Outreach was to stop blindness especially among the poor.
” We are excited to be of help to people who had lost their sights to this preventable disease , whose sights are going to be restored. Cataract is an eye disease and every effort should be made to save it hence, without sight, one can do nothing
” Our target is to attend to 1,000 patients in Abia state so that the patients that regain their sights, would expectedly contribute to the country’s economic growth” announcing that this Free Cataract Extraction Surgeries had kicked off in the South West Zone Outreach in January 2025 and now moved to the South East and South South zones this April.
Also, the Foundation Consultant coordinating the surgeries Dr Ann Amugo had during a visit to governor Otti with her team, commended his strides in the state health sector and for partnering the Outreach.
The Abia state Health Commissioner Professor Enoch Uche who represented governor Otti said that research had shown that treating patients of Cataract gave them new lease of life and made them become five (5) times more productive.
Some of the patients that underwent the Surgery elatedly confirmed regaining their hitherto lost eye visions/sights.
While one Dan Ikpa stated ” after the plaster placed on my eye was removed, I started to see again” a woman who gave her age as 54 and has been blind in one eye but spoke without disclosing her name, said that her operated eye became brighter than the one she was seeing with before her surgery, among other positive testimonies.
The State Outreach Coordinator, Dr Betty Emeka- Obasi, who is also the Administrator of the Abia State Eye Health Management Bureau said that the testimonies of those that underwent the surgeries asserted that their sight/vision were restored and pleaded that the exercise be made not just an annual one but rotated in the state to enable more people access it especially those not in the position and capacity to travel.
The expectation now is what would be the outcome of the surgeries when performed on these under ten aged three children that were born blind but not of same parents.
According to their parent, “their born condition was unexpected. We have been praying for the reversal hence, managing them has been both day and night mares, seeking/ questing for the solution and now specially praying that this comes from this Free Outreach”, they spoke without their names in print.
According to Google source ” Congenital blindness refers to vision loss or significant vision impairment present at birth. This condition occurs when a baby’s eyes do not develop properly during pregnancy. It differs from blindness caused by injuries or illnesses later in life. Some children may have partial vision, while others are completely blind. Early diagnosis is essential to provide care and support as the child grows”.
