What is Trachoma?
Trachoma is a bacterial infection of the eye. If untreated, the infection leads to conjunctival scarring and the inversion of the eyelashes. This causes scarring of the cornea and leads to incurable blindness.
What Causes Trachoma?
- An infection, usually contracted during infancy, with the micro-organism Chlamydia Trachomatis.
- Inadequate living conditions: lack of water, lack of sanitation, poor health care service, poverty, excess of flies that transmit the disease.
What Cures Trachoma?
While the infection can be treated, the blindness, once occurred, is irrevocable.
Treatment:
Further information at www.trachoma.org
Treatment:
- Regular application of antibiotic eye ointments and regular face washes to treat the active infection.
- Eyelid surgery for trichiasis (inturned eyelashes) to help prevent blindness at a more advanced stage of the disease.
- The SAFE strategy combines SURGERY to correct advanced stages of the disease, ANTIBIOTIC distribution to treat active infection and FACE WASHING to reduce disease transmission with ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGE to increase access to clean water and improved sanitation.
Further information at www.trachoma.org
