Eye Donation, as per me is one of the most noble effort of human towards mankind which he/she can put in his/her lifetime.
But according to the study on blindness by Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), facts show that about 25% of the total blind in India are blind due to corneal blindness. We require really a large number of people to donate their eyes if we want to treat these patients. There is a huge gap between the supply and demand of eyes - supply being 10% of demand! And in a country like India this gap is ever increasing. Why this lack of concern? Well, some experts like to believe that such a callous attitude on part of society is due to a lack of a concerted effort on a national scale by everyone who needs to be involved, namely, professionals, the media, Government, voluntary organizations and civil society at large. Then, there are superstitions and strange beliefs to contend with such as the belief that one will be born disfigured or blind in the next birth if eyes are removed before cremation or burial. Wow!!! What a thought process we people have…Amazing….We believe in what has not come yet and no one knows whether it will come or not but do not want to change the situations prevailing right in front of us so that our effort can change someone’s life. That thinking only distinguishes common orthodox man and a visionary.
There are about 1.1 million corneally blind persons in the country. Another 25,000 are added each year. Eye donation in India today meets less than five percent of the demand for corneal transplants.
Though there are 171 eye banks in the country, only 51 are working in true sense. An eye bank is an organization which deals with the collection, storage and distribution of donor eyes for purpose of corneal grafting, research and supply of the eye tissues for other ophthalmic purposes.
People are still not so active about donating eyes. For such kind of people only, some facts that are related to Eye Donation are as follows:-
1.Eyes may be donated only after death.
2.Eyes must be removed within 4-6 hours after death, and the nearest eye bank should be informed immediately.
3.Eyes may be removed only by a trained doctor.
4.The eye bank team will remove the eyes at the home of the deceased or at a hospital.
5.Eye removal takes only 10 to 15 minutes, is simple and does not lead to any disfigurement.
6.Please remember that only the transparent section of the eyes called cornea is taken out and not the full eye ball.
7.A small quantity of blood will be drawn to rule out communicable diseases.
8.The eyes can be pledged to any eye bank preferably the nearest one.
9.The identities of both the donor and the recipient remain confidential.
10.One pair of eyes gives vision to TWO corneal blind people.
11.Eyes are never bought or sold.
12.All religions endorse eye donation.
13. More than 46,000 corneal transplants are performed every year, and the overall success rate of the procedure is 90 percent...meaning your generosity has an impact that is positive and lasting.
14. There is no cost to the family for eye donation.
15. Patients who have undergone cataract surgery can also donate eyes.
16. Spectacle wearers, diabetics, hypertensive and people suffering from systemic disorders like Asthma, Tuberculosis ... can also donate eyes.
17. Cornea can not be used for Transplantation if the patients are identified with AIDS, Hepatitis B, C, Rabies, Septicemia, active Leukemia and any other infectious disease.
18. The intensity of eye donation varies from religion to religion.Jains and Buddhists practice it rigorously.Other religious leaders are not only endorsing eye donation, but preaching to their devotees.
19.The cornea is used for transplantation to the patient's eye by a trained corneal surgeon.
20.The eyes will be evaluated by trained eye bank staff.
21.Eye bank are non-profit organizations and the retrieved cornea are supplied to qualified Corneal Surgeons.
22.The patients are called strictly in accordance with the waiting list. Emergency cases are dealt with in conformity of guidelines.
23.The eyes will be safely transported to the eye bank.
Apart form the above facts, to donate eyes; the relatives of the deceased should do the following procedures
1.Close the eyelids of the deceased
2.Switch off the fan
3.Raise the head of the deceased slightly by placing a pillow underneath
4.Contact the nearest eye bank as quickly as possible
5.Give the correct address with specific landmarks and telephone number to enable the eye bank team locate the place easily
6.If the death certificate from the physician is available, keep it ready
7.Eye donation can be done only with the written consent of the next of kin in the presence of two witnesses
Above all these, there are people who still found themselves stuck in many myths and believes related to this noble cause. While searching on the internet, I found some of these myths and their appropriate solutions by the experts of this field only which I would like to share with all.
Myths and Facts
Myth: Donation will be costly to my family.
Fact: There is no cost to the donor's family for organ and tissue donation. The Eye Bank pays for all costs related to corneal donation. Hospital expenses incurred before the donation in attempts to save the donor's life, and funeral expenses remain the responsibility of the donor's family.
Myth: My religion doesn't allow organ and tissue donation.
Fact: Most religions throughout the world support organ and tissue donation as a humanitarian act of giving. Transplantation is consistent with the life preserving traditions of these faiths. You are encouraged to discuss donation with your religious or spiritual leader.
Myth: If I donate my eyes it will leave holes in the place where they existed.
Fact: Only the Cornea portion of the eye is removed and hence the appearance of the face of the deceased remains the same.
Myth: I’m “blind as a bat” no one wants my eyes.
Fact: Usually poor vision is due to your lens. So you are still able to donate your corneas.
Myth: I can't be a donor because I want an open casket funeral.
Fact: You can still have open casket. There should be no visible signs following eye donation. As long as the body is properly cared for after the time of death. The donor is treated with utmost respect and dignity. The process neither disfigures the body, nor changes the way it looks in a casket. No one, except the family members involved in the decision, will know about the donation.
Myth: No one will want my organs because of my medical history.
Fact: At the time of death, the appropriate medical professionals will review your medical and behavioral history to determine if you are a candidate for donation. With recent advances in transplantation, more people than ever before can donate.
Myth: There is an age cut-off for eye donation.
Fact: People over the age of 80 can not donate their corneas but can donate whole globes.
Myth: Only corneas can be transplanted.
Fact: While cornea transplants make up the majority of eye transplant procedures, the sclera (the white of the eye) can also be transplanted.
Myth: People with cataracts can't be eye donors.
Fact: Cataracts, glaucoma and poor eye sight do not prohibit you from becoming a donor.
Myth: Cornea Transplants are only 50% successful.
Fact: More than 90% of cornea transplant operations successfully restore the recipient's vision.
Myth: Corneal transplants are the not most frequent transplant procedures.
Fact: Cornea transplants are the most frequently performed human transplant procedure.
Myth: The whole eye can be transplanted.
Fact: Only the cornea and the sclera (the white of the eye) can be transplanted.
Myth: Eye tissue can be used for transplants only.
Fact: In addition to corneas used for surgical procedures, more than 35,000 eyes are used annually for research and education.
Myth: Signing an eye donor card will guarantee that I'll be an eye donor.
Fact: The most important action you can take to ensure you will be a donor is to tell your family and legal representative. Most states require your Next of Kin to give consent and medical history for the donation.
The overall conclusion which I would like to share with all is Eye Donation is one of the noblest returns which we can give back to the human world, so that some one can see this beautiful world with our eyes long after we have gone from this world.
So let’s not hesitate and whosoever is going through this article, I would request you to not just go through the article but also pledge yourself and make your near and dear ones also pledge to take a step and register yourself for eye donation. If celebrities like Aishwarya Rai,Celina Jaitley,Rani Mukherjee etc. can put themselves forward for such a noble cause, then why can’t we the common man?
I have already registered myself for eye-donation and would try to bring as many people along with me in this mission to make this a mass success and create awareness among the ignorant people.
Hope my words will definitely make sense to some of the reader(s).
JAI-HIND and VANDE-MATARAM
Author:-Mohit Kumar Jain
Dated:-01-02-2010
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