Globally, one person goes blind every five secondsâ€”and one child loses his or her sight every minute. Of the 45 million blind people in the world today, almost half of them could receive their sight through a one-hour operation.
Cataracts and Crossed Eyes
The consequences of blindness include severe economic and social suffering. The World Health Organization states that 80% of blindness results from causes that were preventable or could now be reversed. But most of the world’s blind - some 90% - live in impoverished nations where even minimal eye care is inaccessible.
Mercy Ships ophthalmic surgeons perform critical eye surgeries affording patients renewed sight and improved quality of life, and train local surgeons in the removal of cataracts, eviscerations and correction of strabismus.