Dr Gideon Avar, an Ophthalmologist, on Monday said cataract and glaucoma were the leading causes of blindness in Nigeria.

Gideon, the Medical Director of Nobis Eye Centre, Jalingo, said this at the inauguration of Nobis VIP Eye Clinic along Yola Road in Jalingo.

According to him, out of about 3,000 benchmark eye surgeries conducted in his hospital every year, cataract accounted for more than 2,000 and glaucoma slightly above 1,000.

“There is growing statistics of eye blindness in Nigeria and the Northeast in particular with cataract and glaucoma as leading causes.

“The good news is that cataract is curable, unlike glaucoma, that if it is not detected early cannot be remedied.

“Our centre, which is known for excellent service delivery at an affordable price, is designed to address this challenge.

“Taraba is backward in terms of healthcare delivery, especially in eye care and our intervention is to close the gap and stop people from traveling long distances to Lagos and Abuja to access services,” he said.

Avar said that his centre was partnering ECWA Eye Centre in Kano and other “super centres” in Nigeria and India to get specialists who would visit to handle special cases.

He urged the people of Taraba and its environs to take advantage of the World Glaucoma Week to check their eyes to fight glaucoma and cataract.

Dr  Edet Nkantah, the Taraba Chairman of Nigeria Medical Association (NMA), commended the efforts of Nobis Eye Centre in complementing government’s efforts in healthcare delivery.

“Nobis centre remains the best in Taraba in terms of equipment and eye care service delivery, the VIP Eye Clinic will improve the tourism potential of the state,” he said

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that March 7 to March 13 is World Glaucoma Awareness Week 2021 with the theme: “World is Bright, Save your Sight”.