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Conf on 'Corneal and Refractive disorders' held at AKU Hospital

KARACHI: With the application of modern Excimer Laser and surgical technology, majority of refractive disorders can be treated so that a person may no longer be dependent on glasses to see things clearly, Dr Naushad Hussain, visiting consultant from McGill University, Canada said while speaking at the "Corneal and Refractive Surgery" conference, held at the Aga Khan University Hospital (AKUH) recently.

Dr Sohail Ahmed, Associate Professor and Chief of Ophthalmology at AKUH, revealed, "a significant number of patients in Pakistan suffer from cornea and refractive disorders. Nutritional deficiency such as Vitamin-A and infections such as trachoma and gonococus, if not diagnosed and treated early can result in severe visual loss due to their damaging effect on the comea, eye lids and external surface of the eyes.

"If the cornea, which is the external transparent window of the eye, is damaged from disease, it can now be successfully treated in 90 percent of cases with advanced micro surgical techniques and corneal transplants."

Dr Azam Ali, Associate Professor of Ophthalmology at AKUH, said: "Corneal dystrophies are disorders in which corneal loses its transparency. These are hereditary, bilateral and progressive. Some of these are treatable with laser techniques in early stages and corneal grafting in later stages. Sometimes due to the hazy cornea cataract extraction becomes difficult but modern techniques including phacoemulsification have made that operation safe, provided it is done by a well trained surgeon."

Dr P.S. Mahar and Dr A.B. Maqsood also presented their papers at the conference.