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Overview
Corneal Transplantation is one of the viable options for visual rehabilitation for corneal blind people, and Keratoplasty, in any form, is considered to be the most frequent type of transplantation in the world. Conclusive data in India, which is essential in defining local or national strategies to fight corneal blindness, is lacking. In Fact, there is a significant data gap. Since 2000, Indian ophthalmologists have often come across a statement that places India’s demands at 100,000 corneal transplants every year to treat corneal blindness as per the vision 2020 program. To meet this demand, 200,000 donor corneas with a utilization rate of 50 % or so are required. However, the exact number of corneal blind people among India’s 1.42 billion population remains unclear, as is the number of individuals who could benefit from corneal transplantation.
Much speculation has gone into the discussion on the number of new corneal blind patients added in the list every year. Old data suggests that it is between 25,000 and 30,000 every year, and this figure has remained unchanged for over 25 years.
The value of anything is realized only when it is lost or is not available. 1.1 million Peoples, majority of them young adults realize the value of sight because they do not have it. Fortunately their eye sight can be restored. The sight lost due to the opaque cornea can be restored by replacing the opaque cornea with clear cornea and the eye donation movement and eye banking are striving to bridge the gap between availability and requirement.