Blindness in India

Sat Nov 22 2014

The condition of poor visual perception is commonly defined as blindness. There is some classification when it comes to blindness and there are various scales to explain the extent of vision loss and define blindness. Total blindness is the complete lack of visual perception and is clinically recorded as “no light perception”. Blindness is frequently used to describe severe visual impairment with some remaining vision. Those described as having only light perception have no more sight than the ability to tell light from dark and the general direction of a light source. According to statistics, 285 million people were visually impaired in the world in 2012, out of which 246 million were cases of low vision and 39 million were cases of total blindness. The major part of this lies in the developing world and mostly occurring to people over the age of 50 years. Talking about numbers in India, one out of every three blind person in world is Indian i.e. estimated 15 million blind people live in India. Out of those 15 million, 3.5 million are reported cases of Corneal Blindness, one of the most common causes of blindness across the country with 30,000 cases adding each year. World Health Organization (WHO) has identified various sources which lead to blindness, which are diseases (like cataract, diabetes, glaucoma etc.), genetic defects, childhood blindness, accidents leading to eye injury etc. In case of blindness arising due to diseases like diabetes, which is known disturbance of the metabolism of human body, the diabetic person should take extra care of the eyes and any early symptom arising should be taken in consideration and treated by eye specialists. Early symptoms of blindness include cloudy vision, the inability to see shapes, seeing only shadows, poor night vision and tunnel vision. The issue of blindness can develop at infant stage too. A child’s visual system begins to develop in the womb, but will not be fully formed until about 2 years of age. A pediatrician will screen your baby for eye problems shortly after birth. If a person is experiencing one of the listed symptoms, he should consult an eye specialist at earliest. Some preventive measures should be adopted to help prevent vision loss. Get regular eye examinations to detect eye diseases. If you are diagnosed with certain eye conditions, such as glaucoma, treatment with medication can help to prevent blindness. In some cases of vision impairment, eyeglasses, surgery, or medication may help to restore your vision. Treatment of partial blindness that cannot be corrected includes guidance on how to function with limited vision. But in the case of complete blindness, it requires more efforts and need to learn certain skills to thrive in lifelike learning to read Braille, organizing your home so you can find things easily, folding money in distinct ways to distinguish bill amount, installing handrails in your bathroom are few to mention *The views expressed here are solely those of the author in his private capacity and do not in any way represent the views of Centre for Sight.

Related Posts
Eye-Care in Summers
Mon Jul 06 2015
Hygiene for Healthy Eyes
Thu Dec 19 2019
Can summer air affect your eyes?
Wed Apr 10 2019
5 Tips To Keep Your Vision Sharp
Tue May 28 2019
6 tips for a 6/6 Vision
Mon Feb 24 2020
10 facts behind the darkness
Thu Jul 07 2016
Nutrition for Healthy Eyesight
Sat Nov 22 2014
Cameras v/s the Human Eye
Wed May 23 2018
How Eye Donation Works in India
Wed May 29 2019
Eye-Care Tips for Your Workplace
Tue May 24 2016
Are you eligible to donate eyes?
Wed Aug 08 2018
Simple Guide to Natural Eye-care
Fri Aug 03 2018
Light up a life
Fri Aug 03 2018
Herbs For The Eyes
Tue Oct 27 2015
Eyeing summer with care
Tue Apr 29 2014
10 Myths about Eye Donation
Tue Sep 04 2018
Importance of Eye Donation
Tue Sep 04 2018
Eye Care Tips For Your Pets
Tue Apr 03 2018
Computer Vision Syndrome
Mon Aug 24 2015
Summer Eye Care
Thu May 15 2014
Nutrition for Your Eyes
Tue Oct 27 2015
Facts and FAQs about Eye Donation
Mon Oct 03 2016
Exercise benefits your eyes
Tue Sep 11 2018
Get Ready for Examinations
Mon Nov 09 2015
Get Rid of Computer Eye Strain
Mon Apr 28 2014
Eye-Care in summers
Mon May 11 2015
7 Tips for Summer Eye Care
Mon May 01 2017
How to Take Care of Eyes Daily
Wed Apr 08 2020
Common Eye allergies
Thu Jun 04 2015
Best Foods for Eye Health
Tue Sep 11 2018
Choosing the right Sunglasses
Mon Jul 06 2015
Know About Lazy Eyes
Tue Sep 04 2018
Why Do Animals Eye Glow In Dark?
Fri Nov 17 2017
Even Great Vision Needs Eye Exam
Tue Sep 11 2018
Common Symptoms of Eye allergies
Mon Jul 06 2015
Choosing the right Sunglasses
Mon May 11 2015
How Pregnancy Affects Vision?
Sat Dec 12 2015
Say No To Reading Glasses
Tue May 29 2018
Eye Care during Monsoons
Mon Aug 24 2015
Eye Donation Facts and Myths
Wed Sep 09 2015
Eye Care Tips for Monsoon
Tue Jul 17 2018
Can LASIK fix Astigmatism?
Sat May 25 2019
Makeup Tips for Healthy Eyes
Thu Apr 19 2018
National Braille Literacy Month
Mon Jan 06 2020
Surprising Animal Vision Facts
Thu Aug 03 2017
Why do we cry?
Thu Aug 03 2017
How Alcohol Affects Our Eyes
Fri May 24 2019
Benefits of Night Vision Glasses
Mon Jun 25 2018
Eye Allergies Symptoms in Monsoon
Tue Jul 17 2018
Appointment Specialist Locate Us Call Us
"I chose Centre for Sight to get rid of my glasses. Their treatment is permanent, has no side effects and gave me the freedom to live to the fullest."
Select Contact Method
Delhi NCR
Rest of India
Find a Specialist
Locate Us
In Delhi / NCR