With 39 million people blind across the world and this number set to rise to 76 million by 2020 without effective intervention, good eye health should be everyone’s concern.
The good news is that 80 per cent of all visual impairment can be avoided or cured and one organisation is at the centre of the fight to eliminate avoidable blindness.
Orbis Africa is a non-profit organisation working in developing countries to reduce preventable and treatable blindness and visual impairment on the African continent.
October is World Sight month and the theme for 2014 is no more avoidable blindness.
Fifty per cent of childhood blindness can be prevented by early detection and treatment.
Orbis Africa has compiled this checklist so that parents and caregivers of young children can detect possible eye problems early enough to save their sight.
Your child’s eye: Look regularly and carefully at the eye for any of these abnormalities:
- A white pupil or white spot on the pupil.
- Not being able to fix on and follow a moving object such as a finger or toy.
- One or both eyes being bigger or smaller than usual.
- Crossed eyes or one eye looking in another direction.
- Redness of the eye and around the eye and/or crustiness.
- Swelling or inflammation.
- Excessive watering.
- Protruding or sticking out eyes.
Your child’s behaviour: Does your child?
- Smile and follow the parent’s face by the time they are three months old, failure to complete this developmental milestone could indicate a vision problem.
- Cover or close one eye when trying to focus on something.
- Hold objects close or get very close to the TV, computer or blackboard.
- Have trouble reading or doing close-up work.
- Tilt or angle the head when trying to focus.
- Complain things are blurred or difficult to see.
- Squint or frown when concentrating and/or looking at things in the distance.
- See double.
- Often bump into walls and furniture.
- Have jerky eye movements.
- Rub their eyes a lot or complain of sore, itchy or scratchy eyes.
Speak to a health care professional immediately if you suspect a problem or your child displays any of the symptoms listed above.
For more information on Orbis Africa’s sight saving work visit www.orbis.org.za or like their Facebook page at www.facebook.com/ORBIS.SA
