Prevention is better than cure – an eye health campaign in Peru

Abstract

Most of the blinding conditions in the world are commonly caused by easily treatable or preventable eye conditions such as cataract, glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy, onchocerchosis, trachoma and uncorrected refractive errors. This paper focuses on one such condition, specifically pterygium. Pterygium is a superficial, external mass that forms over the eye – a common cause of impaired vision and can result in a complete loss of vision, if left unattended. This condition is known to be widely prevalent in the town of Chulucanas, located in the Moroppon province of the Piura region in northeastern Peru. At least one out of every two people in the Piura region of northwestern Peru has some form of pterygium. Not much research has been conducted on the health promotion interventions dealing specifically with reducing or eliminating such eye health conditions. Within a social marketing campaign, this paper provides an overview of a community eye health campaign called Ojos Saludables started in this town. Several issues and challenges surrounding the campaign are also discussed.

Keywords:

• eye health
• pterygium
• health education
• campaign
• prevention

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank Marymount University for their continued financial support in implementing this campaign in Chulucanas, Peru. The authors also express their gratitude to the Mednick Fellowship Committee of the Virginia Foundation for Independent Colleges for supporting our research through a $2,000 grant. Thanks to our graduate student Glenda Palomino-Nuflo, for her time and effort. The authors would also like to thank Kristina Turner, Lorianne Lockwood and Sasi Kumar for their assistance in reviewing and editing this article.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

^1. Vision Health International and Global Health Ministry are among the few nonprofit organizations that are involved in providing eye care and performing surgeries in the Piura region of Peru.