Blindness

BSC NURSING III YEAR / MEDICAL SURGICAL NURSING II

1. BLINDNESS Mr. Manikandan.T , RN., RM., M.Sc (N)., D.C.A .,( Ph.D ) Assistant Professor, Dept. of Medical Surgical Nursing, VMCON, Puducherry .

2. Introduction India is home to the world’s largest number of blind people-The Times of India- oct 11,2007. The number of blind persons in India in 2000 was estimated to be 18.7 million. The projected number of blind persons in India would increase to 24.1 million in 2010 and 31.6 million 2020 A s per National programme for Control of Blindness (NPCB), the prevalence of blindness in India was 1.1% in 2006 -07.

3. Definition State of being totally sightless in both eyes or one eye

4. Causes of Blindness in INDIA Cause Percentage Cataract 62.6% Refraction Error 19.7 % Glaucoma 5.8 % Corneal pathologies 0.9 % Other causes 11.0 %

5. Causes Infection Nutritional deficiency Disease of retinal vessels Chemical poisoning

6. TYPES Color – difficulty to distinguish green and red Night – difficulty to see objects in dark Snow – temporary impairment in vision due to excessive exposure to uv Complete – inability to see in all circumstances Legal – central vision 20/200 Temporary – vision loss shorter period Permanent – vision loss for life time Unilateral – loss of vision in one eye Bilateral – loss of vision in both eye.

7. Diagnosis H.C P/E Ophthalmoscopy

8. Management Correction of refractive errors Cataract & glaucoma correction Laser surgery for retinal detachment Guide dogs GPS guide Braille Sound sense technique to locate objects Touch Smell