Date:27/08/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/08/27/stories/2008082750520200.htm

Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram

Eye donation rate remains low in State

Staff Reporter

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: In spite of campaigns to motivate people to donate their eyes after death, eye donation has not reached the desired level owing to misconceptions and lack of support from the kith and kin of the donors.

According to statistics available with the Health Department, there are 30,000 to 40,000 corneal blindness cases. But, the State was able to manage less than 3,000 corneas through eye donation last year.

Misconception about eye donation among the people, lack of support from the relatives of the deceased in removing the cornea and delay in informing the officials have led to this low level of eye donation in the State, says a Health official.

Even if the deceased has given consent to donate his/her eyes after death, it is mandatory that their relatives should agree when the officials arrive to remove the cornea. “In many cases, the relatives object to the removal of the cornea. Misconception that the entire eye will be removed still prevails,” he added.

The cornea should be removed within four to six hours of the death of the person. It has to be placed in an ice pack and stored in MK medium before shifting it to the eye bank.

There are 75,000 to 1 lakh corneal blindness cases in the country.

But, the corneas that are obtained through eye donation annually are in the range of around 36,000.

Corneal blindness occurs due to a host of problems such as injuries from sharp instruments, infections, accidents and corneal problems due to genetic disorders. Corneal blindness in children due to deficiency of Vitamin A is absent in Kerala, according to Health Services Deputy Director, Ophthalmology, B. S. Krishnamohan.

Instances of Keratoconus (bulging of cornea in the form of a cone), Keratoglobus (bulging of cornea in the form of a globe), Corneal dystrophy (cornea turning white due to genetic disorders) and Keratomaleia (melting of cornea) are also rare in the State.

Keratoplasty, the surgical procedure, that takes less than one hour, can be performed by trained doctors. The cornea that is being removed with care should be transplanted within three days.

The 23rd national eye donation week that was launched in the State on Monday aims at motivating the public to donate their eyes after death to provide a new life to the visually challenged.