Many IT employees are likely to have experienced or heard of Computer Vision Syndrome, which causes dry eyes and irritation. For others, conjunctivitis or Madras Eye is an ever-looming danger at certain times of the year.
These diseases have one thing in common — they are ocular surface disorders (OSD). Such disorders affect the conjunctiva (lining on the inside of the eyelid and the white of the eye), and the limbus (border of the cornea and the white of the eye).
Bhaskar Srinivasan, senior consultant of the Dr. G. Sitalakshmi Memorial Clinic for Ocular Surface Disorders at Sankara Nethralaya, says, “Allergic conjunctivitis and computer vision syndrome are some of the milder examples of such disorders. Certain instances could even lead to corneal blindness.”
For these diseases, as well as the more serious Stevens-Johnson Syndrome, Sankara Nethralaya has been running the Dr. G. Sitalakshmi Memorial Clinic for Ocular Surface Disorders.
“The Stevens-Johnson syndrome is found in around 40 per cent of those who come to the clinic,” he says.
“Around 10 per cent of our patients require keratoprosthesis (a surgical procedure where a diseased cornea is replaced with an artificial cornea) to correct corneal blindness,” he adds.
The Rotary Club of Guindy, Rotary Club of Penang and Rotary Club Alo Star have donated Rs. 30 lakh towards the clinic as part of the Rotary Global Grant. This grant will be towards prevention and treatment of corneal blindness due to ocular surface disorders.
“The grant will be used for keratoprosthesis and purchasing special lenses called Boston Scleral Lenses that provide relief to patients with Stevens-Johnson syndrome,” he says. Around 100 patients visit the clinic every week.
