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One of the leading diseases of blindness in the world, cataracts are an eye damage that makes the lens cloudy. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), pathology is now responsible for 51% of vision loss cases on the planet, or about 20 million people.
In Brazil, the estimate is that there are two million carriers. The Brazilian Society of Ophthalmology reports that about 550,000 new cases occur each year. Although it is a condition that can be corrected by surgery, many patients are afraid to seek appropriate treatment, especially the elderly. But why do people with cataracts prefer to cope with blindness in corrective surgery?
In the evaluation of the ophthalmologist Heloisa Nascimento, of the Instituto de Visão da Paulista (IPEPO) – a philanthropic non-profit organization, founded by Department of Ophthalmology, Federal University of São Paulo (UNIFESP), Escola Paulista de Medicina – one of the reasons is the lack of accurate information about the disease and, in particular, about surgery. "There are certain myths about cataracts, the first is that it only concerns the elderly, and although the senile type is the most widespread – the one that occurs with the natural aging of the lens, the natural crystalline lens – there are cases of babies born with the conbad type, a rare form of the disease.Some people also develop cataracts for secondary causes such as diabetes, chronic use of corticosteroids, metabolic diseases, trauma and excessive exposure to ultraviolet rays. "
Despite the incidence of the disease, the good news is that it is treatable and can be surgically corrected, making vision to patients, if there is not other related problems. For people with cataracts, blurred vision makes it difficult to carry out daily activities such as reading, driving, using public transport or simply walking on the street. It is a condition that compromises employability and quality of life.
At the request of Catarata Central, a social impact company that allows surgeries at a more affordable cost to be addressed by the population – the ophthalmologist lists the top five myths about the disease. And that encourages patients to ask for help to review.
# 1 It is necessary to wait "to ripen" the cataract to perform the operation
MYTH. According to the doctor, the surgical procedure is indicated whenever the disease interferes with the daily life of any person. In the past, cataract surgery was more complex as it involved hospitalization, general anesthesia, and a restrictive postoperative period. "In recent years, we have achieved an incredible breakthrough with the use of technology that has made the procedure much safer for patients, today they leave the same day as the hospital." he explains.
# 2 Diabetes is not a risk factor. Diabetes is a silent disease that, if left unchecked, affects different organs, including the eyes. There are several studies and studies warning about the incidence of cataracts in diabetic patients, mainly because of high blood sugar levels in the blood.
# 3 Eye drops can cure cataracts
MYTH. Cataract treatment is only possible by surgery. With topical anesthesia, a two millimeter incision is made in the eye. A device – resembling a straw – sucks the contents of the cataract into the lens. Then an intraocular lens is implanted behind the iris (colored part of the eyes). "This prosthesis that restores the vision of patients can also have a specific degree for everyone, allowing you to see clearly without using glbades, and unlike the prosthesis of the heart or hip, which leaves a kind of limitation, it is the only one in medicine that restores function. "
No. 4 Only the elderly are affected
MYTH. Senile cataract is part of the common aging of the population. "Just as we are going to have white hair, we are going to have cataracts, it is a reality and one day we will all have to do the corrective operation.However, there are other types of cataracts, such as conbad diseases that manifest themselves in childhood or secondary causes. "
Cataract No. 5 may return after surgery
MYTH. Cataract is curable. Once the lens is replaced by an intraocular lens, the disease will not return. What can happen is a process of opacity of the posterior capsule in which the prosthesis is placed. In order to solve this situation, it is recommended to perform a kind of polishing of the laser lens – a procedure performed in the outpatient clinic, in a quick and painless way
The challenge of care in the unified health system [19659002] The Brazilian who depends on the public health network – and needs an ophthalmologist – waits an average of 314 days for a cataract badessment. In practice, almost a full year to check if there is any indication of surgery, according to data from the São Paulo Municipal Department of Health. Until December 2017, the waiting line of the Sistema nico de Saúde (SUS) for the correction of lens opacity counted 24,000 people, only in São Paulo; in Brazil, there are 113,185 citizens, according to a survey conducted by the Federal Council of Medicine (CFM).
Brazil already has 30 million elderly people, which represents a potential demand for 1.5 million cataract surgeries per year. However, the number of surgeries performed is less than that. In five years, from 2012 to 2017, SUS interventions increased by 13%, compared to a 19% increase in the number of mature people. To complicate the scenario, the number of beneficiaries of the health plan decreased by 1.4%. According to the National Health Agency (ANS), in 2017 there were 47.4 million beneficiaries of a health plan, representing 23% of the population. During this year, 241,000 cataract surgeries were performed by the health plans, compared to 428,000 by the SUS (DataSUS), for a total of 669,000 surgeries.
Low income motivated the creation of the Cataract Center. The company, created in 2017, has already performed more than 500 surgeries – only the first year – with the social goal of making surgery more accessible, offering unique pricing conditions, simple payment methods and processes transparent.
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