DUBAI // More than 400 Yemenis have had sight-saving operations thanks to the medical charity Noor Dubai Foundation.
This year the organisation screened 3,500 people and operated on more than 432 of them to remove cataracts and allow them to see fully once again.
“The number one cause of blindness around the world is cataracts,” said Dr Manal Taryam, the chief executive of the foundation.
“However, it is also a reversible condition and it takes only six minutes of surgery for the patient to regain their eyesight at 20/20 vision.”
As well as operations, the charity also distributed 1,200 medical glasses to those with eyesight problems.
“Cataracts mostly occur in older people as the eye lenses begin to degrade, but there are a number of factors that can result in younger people getting it, including malnutrition – and it can also be congenital,” Dr Taryam said.
About 1 per cent of the population in Yemen is estimated to be blind, she said.
The foundation’s medical team screened and treated patients in Bajil, a small town about 100 kilometres west of the capital, Sanaa.
The six-day camp began on October 20 and was led by a team of 13 doctors, 10 nurses and paramedics.
The mobile camp is supported by the Dubai Islamic Humanitarian Foundation.
A group of Yemeni doctors and optometrists supervised the camp.
“Unfortunately, due to the political situation, we haven’t been able to establish anything permanent there, but hopefully once things become more stable it is something we will look into,” Dr Taryam said.
“Although we find malnutrition is the main cause of cataracts in Africa, in Yemen it is mostly congenital and, because people have no access to treatment, many of those affected are children.”
The charity is appealing to the public for donations so that it can continue its work.
“Surgery costs US$4 (Dh15) per eye and glasses cost $6 to $8 per piece, because we manufacture them ourselves,” said Dr Taryam.
“So, for example, if someone donated Dh100 then that would help 40 to 50 children across Asia and Africa.”
Essa Al Maidoor, the chairman of Noor Dubai Foundation, said it was the sixth camp of its kind in Yemen.
“The foundation first conducted a camp in January 2009 and treatment was provided to 11,000 individuals,” he said. “The aim of this camp is to provide sight-saving treatment to patients in need.”
Since its inception in 2008, the Noor Dubai Foundation has provided medical services and treatment to about 23 million people.
In addition to this camp, a team from the foundation is scheduled to visit the Philippines next month to conduct its fourth eye camp in Lanao del Sur province.
The charity also has a three-year initiative in Ethiopia to eliminate a bacterial eye infection known as trachoma, which is a major cause of preventable blindness in the developing world.
The foundation was launched in September 2008 by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, to target preventable forms of blindness.
To donate, or for more details about the foundation, visit www.noordubai.ae.
nhanif@thenational.ae
