Eye donation pledges surpass 2.3 million: Eye Donation Society

By Poojathmi Rivithma

Colombo, July 13 (Daily Mirror) - More than 2.3 million people have pledged to donate their eyes after death, the Sri Lanka Eye Donation Society announced.

Society Chairman Ayodhya Sampath de Silva said a total of 2,307,800 eye donation pledges have been registered to date.

He said 1,443 eyes were donated during June, facilitating 843 corneal transplants, including 173 for patients in Sri Lanka and 670 for recipients overseas.

De Silva said the Society's Corneal Transplant Programme has restored the vision of 243,142 patients so far, comprising 138,850 local patients and 104,292 international patients.

Meanwhile, the Society's Tissue Bank supplied 212 tissues for transplantation during June, increasing the cumulative number of tissues provided to 20,496.

The Society also conducted nine free spectacle distribution programmes during the month, under which 1,933 pairs of spectacles were distributed free of charge.

In addition, 425 patients were selected under the Society's free cataract surgery programme in June, while 167 cataract surgeries were successfully carried out, de Silva said.