50,000 Balinese suffering from cataracts: Health official

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Fri, 01/21/2011

About 50,000 people in Bali are suffering from cataracts and the number is expected to increase by 0.1 percent annually, a physician says.

Many people suffer from the disease not only because of old age, but also because of poor nutrition, unfavorable weather, diabetes and excessive exposure to sunlight, Indera Hospital chief Dr. Pande Sri Joni said Friday in Denpasar after receiving Australian Ambassador to Indonesia Greg Moriarty.

Moriarty visited the hospital in relation to health donations from the Australian government amounting to Aus$3 million, Antara reported Friday.

Joni said cataract patients could get their sight back through operations, adding that despite efforts by the government to prevent the illness, the number of cataract patients continued to increase.

“Every day [we] perform 10 operations. Each year we treat 1,000 patients and the number will increase to 2,000,” he said.

The hospital has five ophthalmologists who perform the eye surgery and also a mobile unit that can travel to villages throughout Bali upon requests from regional administrations.