A local eye specialist has raised concerns about young children developing cataracts — an eye affliction normally found in older people.
Colonial War Memorial Hospital (CWMH) ophthalmologist Dr Elenoa Raikabakaba said they were performing 18 cataract surgeries this week and they all involved children.
“So the surgeries for this week, they’re all kids with cataract and cataract is something that you would expect naturally in older patients — 60 years and above,” she said.
“So normally, or naturally, you get cataract in older patients, not children.
“It’s not natural to have cataract in children.”
However, Dr Raikabakaba said the increase in pediatric cataracts could be genetic or could be associated with some other syndrome. “Cataracts can happen to some children.
“One, it can be genetic, just like some other diseases that are passed down from their parents.
“Two, it can be associated with some syndromes like down syndrome or it can be associated with other systemic illnesses that they have and sometimes we may not know the cause.
“So it’s not very common in children, but it does happen.”
Dr Raikabakaba said children with eye conditions needed to get the issue corrected before they reached critical age.
“If you wait for them to be adults to have surgery, it may not improve their eyesight so that’s the difference between the cataract in children and the cataract in adults.”
