Free eye tests are booked out

Leaving many without care, while many optical conditions are more prevalent in UAE than other areas.

ABU DHABI // A free eye examination programme proved so popular that it was filled to capacity within days, leaving many people in need of the screening without feasible alternatives. The Moorfields Eye Hospital Dubai had offered 100 free eye tests over a two-month period, but demand has exceeded expectations. "The response has been huge," said Dr Chris Canning, the medical director of the hospital. "It's full up, which is why we're not advertising it. People get a little bit of extra information about their eyes and there are a fair amount of people who need treatment."

Insurance programmes vary greatly across the Emirates, and many people do not have policies that sufficiently cover their optical needs. Dr Canning said a quarter of the population could benefit from eye examinations, whether they required a simple tweaking to their present prescription, or were in need of a sight-saving operation. There are many eye conditions that are more prevalent in the UAE than in other parts of the world, many of which, if left untreated, can lead to blindness.

"Three to four per cent of the population has glaucoma, and half the patients with glaucoma do not know that they've got it." Some Emiratis have a genetic disposition to retina problems, which is exacerbated by the high rate of diabetes among the local population. Diabetes can lead to many complications, including diabetic retinopathy, which can lead to blindness and affects a majority of those who have had diabetes for 10 or more years.

"Diabetes is much more common here and therefore diabetic eye disease is more common, so that is a big one for us," Dr Canning said. "Sometimes, the first symptom of diabetes is when the vision fails. When people are checked to determine why their vision's failed, they find out they've had diabetes for some time. It's a common story, actually." People living in the UAE are also at higher risk for cataracts - a clouding of the eye that obscures vision. The condition, which can be treated through surgery, often affects patients here 20 years earlier than is typical in the rest of the world.

Treatment and regular monitoring are key to keeping eye problems in check. Glaucoma, for example, can lead to blindness, but many patients are not aware they have it because it initially affects only the periphery of their vision, then gradually reduces the scope of sight until patients can only see directly in front of them. It is readily treatable and common in the elderly. Dr Canning said: "Another condition is keratoconus, which is a strange condition where the collagen that goes to make up the cornea seems to be abnormally stretchy or weak and so the cornea gets a bit misshapen. It leads to progressive deterioration of the eye condition, which needs to be treated."

But eye conditions are not limited to adults and Dr Canning stresses the importance of testing children before they begin school. "When the problem is not diagnosed, that can affect how well the students perform in class and this can affect their whole future. If the reason they're not doing well in school is because they can't see properly, well that's a real shame because that's easily treatable."

A child's first experience with school can set the tone for the future, he said, adding that many children with vision problems acted up in school and had discipline issues. It is estimated that up to 25 per cent of children have vision problems. "Some are very mild and some are quite major and need treatment," Dr Canning said. "Children don't volunteer the fact that they don't see properly as a rule, particularly young children, because they don't know what they should be able to see, they just know what they can see."

He recommends that children get their eyes tested at the age of three. There is no formal screening programme in the UAE, but Moorfields Eye Hospital will be screening at certain schools in Dubai next term. At screening programmes operated by the hospital last year, it was discovered that one in eight children had eye problems, most of which were previously undiagnosed. @Email:[e-mail]