Trachoma and Presbyopia

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(No Transcript)
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2 Eye Diseases I Hope You Never Experience (and 1
You Probably Will)
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Trachoma, Onchocerciasis, and Presbyopia

• Which are you almost guaranteed to be afflicted
  by?

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Trachoma, Onchocerciasis, and Presbyopia

• Which are you almost guaranteed to be afflicted
  by?

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Trachoma, Onchocerciasis, and Presbyopia

• Which are you almost guaranteed to be afflicted
  by?

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Trachoma, Onchocerciasis, and Presbyopia

• Which are you almost guaranteed to be afflicted
  by?

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SightFirst Initiatives

• Project for Elimination of Avoidable Childhood
  Blindness
• 35 centers around the world to deliver care to
  100 million kids
• Lions Eye Health Program
• Community-based education program in the US and
  industrialized countries
• River Blindness/Trachoma Control
• SightFirst China Action Project
• Over 5 million cataract surgeries performed in
  rural China and Tibet

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Since 1980, SightFirst has

• Awarded 232.5 million for 956 projects in 100
  countries
• Provided 7.6 million cataract surgeries
• Prevented serious vision loss for 30 million
• Improved eye care services for hundreds of
  millions
• Provided 131 million treatments for river
  blindness
• Built or expanded 300 eye hospitals/clinics/wards
  
• Upgraded 372 eye centers with equipment
• Provided management training for 115 facilities
• Trained 345,000 ophthalmologists, ophthalmic
  nurses, other professional eye care workers and
  village health workers
• Launched world's first-ever initiative to combat
  childhood blindness in partnership with the World
  Health Organization. The 35 pediatric eye care
  centers established or strengthened have impacted
  the lives of 100 million children

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Trachoma, Onchocerciasis, and Presbyopia

• Which are Lions helping to eradicate?

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Trachoma

• Is the leading cause of blindness from infection
  in the world today
• 84 million people WW are infected (WHO)
• 8 million are visually impaired
• Caused by Chlamydia trachomatis bacteria
• Primarily affects the worlds poor where hygiene
  and environmental factors proliferate the bacteria

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How Does it Spread?

• A bacterial infection that spreads among children
  and to their caregivers
• Environment makes repeated infection likely
• Disease causes discharge from the eye that easily
  infects others through incidental contact

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What Does Trachoma Do?

• Initially causes conjunctivitis with redness,
  swelling
• With repeated re-infection, causes eyelid
  scarring and corneal damage
• Ultimately causes the eyelashes to turn inward
  and severely damage the cornea

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How is Trachoma Treated?

• Very Easily! (if caught early enough)
• A single dose of Zithromax (donated by Pfizer)
  wipes out the infection
• Surgery is needed to reconstruct the eyelid in
  advanced Trachoma
• Severe corneal damage permanent vision loss

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How is Trachoma Prevented?

• Treat the active cases with antibiotic
• Face washing to reduce disease transmission
• Environmental changes to increase access to clean
  water and improved sanitation

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What Lions Are Doing To Help Eradicate Trachoma?

• Partnership with the Carter Center, Pfizer, WHO,
  and others to treat and educate
• A comprehensive plan to eliminate the disease by
  2020 has been created
• In 2008, the 10 millionth dose of Zithromax was
  distributed
• Projects in Ethiopia alone have received more
  than 7 million in funding

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Onchocerciasis (River Blindness)

• Is the 2nd leading cause of blindness from
  infection in the world today
• 18 million are infected
• 300,000 are blind from the disease
• Caused by parasitic worm transmitted by bite from
  black fly
• Worm can live for 15 years in the human body

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What Does River Blindness Do?
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How Is It Treated/Prevented?

• A single annual dose of a drug manufactured and
  donated by Merck called Mectizan

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What Lions Are Doing To Help Eradicate River
Blindness?

• Partnership with the Carter Center to treat and
  educate
• Supported more than 114 million treatments in
  Africa and Latin America
• Work in 12 countries
• Eradication targeted in Latin America by 2010

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Why Cant I Read the Paper Anymore?
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What Causes Presbyopia?
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One Option
Photo by Ben Ward, Flickr
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Multi-focal Lens
RestorTM lens Alcon Labs
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Accommodating lens
CrystalensTM BL
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Thank You!