History of Vision Advancement in Singapore
A Glance Through Changing Times of Eyecare in the Lion City
The bulk of treatment in the 1930s was focused on cataract, glaucoma, trauma and eye infections. The advent of the 1940s brought the realization that a lack of vitamin A led to many disorders of the eye. Laws were hence put in place to fortify all condensed milk with vitamin A.
Prior to 1969, glaucoma was recognized to be the leading cause of acquired blindness in Singapore. By the 1970s, ophthalmic research had made significant headway into eye infections with Singapore researchers isolating two distinct viruses believed to be the cause of a serious eye infection that swept across Africa and Asia. Between 1985 and 1995, retinal conditions were noted to cause more than half the cases of new blindness. Other causes were associated with birth and developmental defects as well as glaucoma.
Benefits of Early Detection and Treatment
The early detection and treatment of glaucoma was significantly responsible for the reduction in glaucoma-related new blindness. Computerized techniques began to allow ophthalmologists to detect changes in the visual field earlier while new ophthalmic medication brought greater control of the pressure in the eye.
Preventing blindness and restoring good vision are specific aspects of ophthalmology that other medical practitioners consider to be highly significant in the history of ophthalmology practice in Singapore. The introduction of phacoemulsification in the early 1990s helped to prevent the development of surgically induced astigmatism that was previously common in cataract surgery. Just prior to 2000, ophthalmology in Singapore had already begun to come of age in both the ability to prevent blindness from diabetes and glaucoma as well as the ability to restore good vision.
Untreated eye damage due to diabetes was identified as a significant cause of blindness in the elderly. A good screening program was hence essential to identify patients at risk for developing diabetic eye damage so that they could be treated. This was put in place. With further advances in technology, came the use of a procedure known as panretinal laser photocoagulation and this remains a reliable therapy for treating the specific condition known as proliferative diabetic retinopathy.
Progressing Through the Millenium
In 2001, the then Minister of Health identified two key challenges facing ophthalmology in Singapore: blindness in the elderly and shortsightedness. To reduce blindness and vision problems in the elderly, screening projects were initiated for the early detection of conditions like glaucoma, cataracts and refractive errors.
Whether by genetic makeup, environmental influences or a combination of both, the proportion of those with shortsightedness in Singapore is known to be among the highest in the world. Statistics show that the condition affects close to a fifth of preschoolers and primary students along with two thirds of the youth completing their university education. Furthermore 10% of Singapore’s adults have high degrees of shortsightedness compared to less than 2% for adults in Western populations. Alarmingly, the number of new cases of shortsightedness in Singaporean adults has been continually increasing with each new cohort and with every new generation.
Thankfully for many, the options available for returning natural vision have also developed in step. Refractive surgery has advanced to the point where lasers now allow precise and safe treatment of shortsightedness. The most widely accepted option and the one that continues to advance is LASIK.
The merlion of Singapore
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