Vijayawada, 3 September 2021: The comprehensive and dedicated, state-of-the-art cataract facility at L V Prasad Eye Institute’s Kode Venkatadri Chowdary Campus at Tadigadapa in Vijayawada has been now named as ‘Vellanki Venkateswara Rao & Vijaya Kumari Cataract Centre’, courtesy - Smt Sridevi and Sri Suresh Challa from Hyderabad. The Cataract Centre was inaugurated on 3 September 2021 by Mr Mukesh Kumar Meena, IAS, Secretary to Government Industries & Commerce (FP) Dept., Andhra Pradesh.
Cataract has been documented to be the most significant cause of bilateral blindness in India responsible for 50-80% of the bilaterally blind in the country. India has made huge strides from 2007 to 2019 in improving vision care - according to Health Ministry - with a reduction of the prevalence of blindness by 47% and a reduction in visual impairment by 51.9%. Despite this phenomenal success, cataracts continue to be a challenge.
Surgery is the only available option to treat cataract where the clouded lens of the patient is replaced with a clear artificial lens. Cataract can affect any age group, even newborns and young children can have a cataract, and cataract removal surgeries in children require high expertise. Early detection and treatment are critical in restoring sight. The procedure is simple with a quick recovery when performed by trained ophthalmologists.
'I congratulate L V Prasad Eye Institute for this very laudable initiative. LVPEI is a premiere institute and excels not only in providing eye care services but also in its services to the public, especially to those in need,' said Mr Mukesh Kumar Meena during the ceremony. Mr Kumar has been a long-time supporter and well-wisher of LVPEI.
Equipped with a qualified team of experienced doctors including paediatric ophthalmologists, LVPEI eye care centre at Vijayawada offers advanced, customized and cutting edge surgical techniques to treat cataract. Precision, safety and patient satisfaction is the ultimate aim. We are extremely grateful to Mr Mukesh Kumar Meena for joining us at the inauguration ceremony and to Smt Sridevi and Sri Suresh Challa for their generous support, said Dr Anasua Ganguly Kapoor, Campus Head, Kode Venkatadri Chowdary Campus, L V Prasad Eye Institute, Vijayawada.
The Kode Venkatadri Chowdary Campus at Tadigadapa in Vijayawada, established in February 2011, is LVPEI’s 3rd Tertiary eye care centre. Since its inception, over 722,242 outpatients have been examined and 73,941 surgeries including 35,345 cataract surgeries, have been performed at the centre. True to the principles of the L V Prasad Eye Institute, 50% of the services at the centre are provided free of cost to the underprivileged, irrespective of the complexity of care needed. For the benefit of patients, LVPEI is also empanelled with the state Government’s YSR Aarogyasri scheme.
About LVPEI: Established in 1987, L V Prasad Eye Institute (LVPEI), a World Health Organization Collaborating Centre for Prevention of Blindness, is a comprehensive eye health facility. The Institute has ten active arms to its areas of operations: Clinical Services, Education, Research, Vision Rehabilitation, Rural and Community Eye Health, Eye Banking, Advocacy and Policy Planning, Capacity Building, Innovation and Product Development. The LVPEI Eye Care Network has 236 Centres (Centre of Excellence, Tertiary, Secondary and Primary Eye Care Centres) spread across the states of Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and Karnataka in India. The institute's mission is to provide equitable and quality eye care to all sections of society. The LVPEI’s five-tier ‘Eye Health Pyramid’ model covering all sections of society right from the villages to the city, provides high quality and comprehensive - prevention, curative and rehabilitation – eye care to all. It has served over 32.11 million (3 crore 21 lakh people), over 50% of them entirely free of cost, irrespective of the complexity of care needed.