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National confab focuses on efforts to reduce blindness

Posted on October 25, 2013

HO CHI MINH CITY, (PNA/VNS) — Vietnam targets to reduce the rate of preventive blindness among people above 50 years old to 2.35 per cent by 2019, according to the National Institute of Ophthalmology.

Do Nhu Hon, director of the institute, said at a national ophthalmology congress held here Friday that the rate of blindness among people above 50 years old fell to 3.1 per cent in 2008 from 4.67 per cent in 2002.

He said the national blindness prevention plan for 2014-19 period, which will be submitted to the Prime Minister for approval, targets to reduce the rate of preventive blindness among people above 50 years old to 2.35 per cent by 2019.

Last year, the country performed 2,390 cataract operations per 1 million people, exceeding the targeted rate of 2,000 cases per 1 million per year.

The prevalence of refractive error among school-aged children was high, with around 3 million children between 5-16 years old having refractive error and in need of glasses, he said.

An estimated 200,000 people with trichiasis are in need of surgery. Last year, only 15,000 cases of trichiasis surgery were performed.

More than 409,000 people are blind in both eyes, with more than 270,000 cases due to cataracts, 26,000 blindness cases due to glaucoma and 6,900 due to trachoma.

Seven provinces have not established a community eye care unit, including Ben Tre, Long An, Dong Nai, Dong Thap, Hau Giang, Tay Ninh in the south and Khanh Hoa in the Central.

Subjects such as glaucoma, pediatric ophthalmology, plastic surgery and neuro-ophthalmology are being discussed during the three-day conference.

It is attended by more than 750 ophthalmologists, surgeons and technicians from hospitals and clinics across the country and other countries, including the US, France, Japan, Germany and Singapore.

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