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Jun
09
2021
By The African Mirror
How The Gambia beat trachoma, an infection that causes blindness

How The Gambia beat trachoma, an infection that causes blindness

HEALTH
THE government of The Gambia recently announced that the country had eliminated trachoma, a highly contagious eye disease, after years of hard work by health workers, nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) and communities. MUSA MUTALI, Lecturer of Optometry, University of Benin In The Gambia, the disease accounted for 17% of the reported blindness in a national survey in 1986. The prevalence of trachoma has dropped from 0.1% to 0.02% in the last 10 years. Current estimates show a prevalence of less than 0.2% in adults aged over 15 years. This is about one case per 1,000 people. Trachoma has been described as…
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Apr
22
2021
By The African Mirror
Gambia eliminates trachoma, a leading cause of blindness worldwide

Gambia eliminates trachoma, a leading cause of blindness worldwide

HEALTH
EMELINE WUILBERCQ GAMBIA has eliminated trachoma, one of the leading causes of blindness worldwide, the government has announced, after almost four decades of work to counter the disease. Trachoma, a bacterial eye infection that damages the eyelids and causes the eyelashes to turn inwards, is one of 20 neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) that the World Health Organization says disproportionately affect the world's poorest people. If not corrected with surgery, it can lead to irreversible vision loss and blindness. "Eliminating a disease on this scale is a massive achievement," said Simon Bush, director of NTDs at Sightsavers, an international charity working…
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Jan
31
2021
By The African Mirror
In the midst of a pandemic, Nigeria battles to end a painful blinding disease

In the midst of a pandemic, Nigeria battles to end a painful blinding disease

HEALTH
ADAOBI TRICIA NWAUBANI and NITA BHALLA FOR eight years Nigerian housewife Mallama Baraka suffered in silence as the eye disease trachoma, which can blind but is entirely preventable, slowly took its toll. It started with a watery discharge and a burning, itchy sensation in her eyes. Her eyelids swelled and her eyelashes turned inside them, causing her extreme pain each time she blinked. Over time, she began to see less clearly. "It became hard for me to do my daily chores ... but the clinic is far and it would take time and money to go there. I thought whatever…
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