"Apri gli occhi" reaches Abruzzo
Beginning in schools today, “Apri gli occhi” (open your eyes) is the information campaign promoted by Iapb Italia, the international non-profit agency for the prevention of blindness, in collaboration with the Ministry for Welfare and the provincial sections of the Italian Union for the Blind and Visually Impaired. From today through February 11, the scientific and teaching campaign will run in Abruzzo and Chieti at the elementary schools of Madonna del Freddo, Nolli and Via per Francavilla.
“Information and knowledge are the starting-off points for the early diagnosis and prevention of the main eye disorders responsible for impaired vision and blindness”, said Leonardo Mastropasqua, president of the Italian University Ophthalmological Society and director of the Regional Ophthalmological Center at the hospital in Colle dell'Ara. «In particular», the professor continued, “unless it is diagnosed and treated early, lazy eye is frequently the cause of low vision”.
According to Istat, in Abruzzo there are about 12-thousand blind people and the number of those with low vision is three times that figure. In the whole of Italy there are over 362-thousand blind people and 1.5 million people who see very little. Frequently, upstream there are disorders that can be corrected, especially if they are diagnosed in time and at an early age. Mastropasqua believes that correct preventive treatment should begin at three years of age with orthoptic and ophthalmological examinations.
The professor also stated that “our group has been training school teachers for years. There are signs that must not be ignored. For example, when a child holds a book very close to his face, reads with his head on one side or, if the sunlight is very bright in the classroom, tends to look with one eye and close the other”.
Small signals that are worth mentioning to eye specialists. Perhaps a good opportunity is the Iapb campaign whose mascot is the shortsighted Bat. He is the star of a show and a cartoon on a DVD distributed free. During the show, the children learn about the parts of the eye that allow them to see and, specifically, why sight must always be cared for. Today the campaign is in Ortona and Castel Frentano, from the 3rd to the 5th in Chieti, Bucchianico, Castelbordino and Vasto and on the 9th in Teramano. The 25 shows will be presented to 4250 students.
