The Picture is not so bright

On World Sight Day, here are a few numbers to worry about

You might not know that October 8 is World Sight Day; if you do, you might wonder why dedicate an entire day to the faculty of sight. An answer could be that 4.3 billion people across the world suffer from impaired vision. Of them, 2.5 billion have no access to corrective measures.

Refractive error and, worse, the lack of its treatment, have been silently nibbling away at the growth and development of a large swathe of the world’s population. According to data sourced from Essilor, a French manufacturer of ophthalmic lenses and optical instruments, 30 per cent of the world’s population under the age of 18 years reportedly suffers from uncorrected refractive error. This condition is often not diagnosed due to lack of awareness or access to care. This proportion rises to 33 per cent in the labour force, 37 per cent among the elderly and 23 per cent among motorists.

An estimated 19 million children across the world are visually impaired. Of them, 12 million suffer from refractive error, which could be diagnosed and corrected.

The direct impact of an impaired vision shows on productivity as well. Every year, $269 billion worth of productivity is lost because of such disorders, even as the required solutions (eye exams, corrections) are available. Additionally, it is estimated that all road accidents globally cost £30 million annually. Of that, 60 per cent is accounted for by accidents linked to vision. 

In spite of this, according to estimates by the World Health Organization, 153 million people across the world continue to live with visual impairment due to uncorrected refractive error. 

The Indian picture

The situation in India is no better, with nearly 550 million people in need of vision correction. The total productivity loss in the country due to uncorrected vision comes to about $37 billion annually.

While eye-tests and vision screening are common in most schools, a significant number of school-going children are never tested for the condition. The prevalence of blindness is higher among populations having lower socio?economic status, with rural areas suffering the most. 

Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Jammu & Kashmir have high prevalence of blindness (two per cent and above), according to the National Survey records.