Cataract is a loss of transparency of the eye’s natural lens. In advanced cases (mature cataract), the lens may appear white or dark brown in colour. The most common form is age related cataract, which usually develops gradually over a period of years or decades.
Cataract is the main causes of avoidable blindness and visual impairment in Cameroon and Africa as a whole.
Excessive glare, poor color discrimination, blurred or smoky vision especially in strong light, and in some cases, total blindness in the affected eye are some of the complaints patients with cataract may have.
Some patients with cataract in West Africa have likened the reduced vision to the profound limitation of visibility caused by dusty weather during harmattan.
The photograph on the right simulates the type of vision a patient with advanced cataract could have, in contrast with that of a person with a healthy eye or an eye following cataract surgery (left).
