Medicontur’s involvement is well illustrated through its community activities such as IOLs and other ophthalmologic material donations, service and support to humanitarian organizations and medical missions.
Preventing blindness - Building the future
Lets’ look at it:
A 10 minute surgery can prevent blindness...
Cataract is certainly one of the main reasons for blindness in the world, with glaucoma, which could be prevented or treated; thus reducing the number of individuals suffering from blindness.
This is even truer taking into consideration aged people, over 50 years old, in the poorest countries over the globe where materials, clinics and surgeons are scarce to offer individuals the opportunity to have their cataract treated. In these areas, the risk for early visual degradation leading to blindness is increasing at an alarming rate.
The World Health Report published during the latter stages of the 90s estimated that there were already nearly 20 million people in the world who were bilaterally blind from age-related cataract.
This represented 43% of all blindness.
The number of blind people in the world and the proportion due to cataract is expected to severely increase due to population growth and to increasing longevity.
“The result of these two factors means that the population aged over 60 years will double during the next 20 years from approximately 400 million now, to around 800 million in 2020. This increase in the elderly population will result in a greater number of people with visual loss and blindness from cataract” (*)
According to the WHO (World Health Organization) more than two thirds of all blindness in the world could be avoided.
Medicontur is deeplycommitted to supporting humanitarian organizations who seek IOLs, service and training, to program medical missions whose goal is blindness prevention through cataract surgery.
Medicontur’s efforts are dedicated to those who might benefit from such surgical treatment, and whose local medical community aims at a continuing eye care policy.
Medicontur is proud to offer these products and support to all these professionals to strengthen their action towards the most underprivileged people and offer them a better opportunity to build their future.
(*) Source:
Community Eye Health Journal
World Health Report: Life in the 21st Century - A Vision for All. World Health Organization, Geneva, 1998
