Iraq has eliminated trachoma as a public health problem, reports the World Health Organization, making it the fifth country in the region to do so. Trachoma is the most common infectious cause of blindness worldwide. In 1995, there were 146 million active cases of trachoma, but today, there are only about ten million active cases of trachoma.
Ethiopia, Somalia, and Niger have the highest rates of trachoma — Ethiopia alone has well over a million people with the disease. There are also large populations of trachoma sufferers in Nigeria, South Sudan, Pakistan, and Afghanistan.
Trachoma used to occur on rare occasion in the U.S. on Indian reservations and in the deep south, but in 2019, there were no reported cases of the disease in the U.S.
Trachoma is an eye infection affecting both eyes. It is the world’s leading cause of infectious blindness. A bacterium called Chlamydia trachomatis causes trachoma. According to the WHO, trachoma has caused the visual impairment of 1.8 million people. Of those people, 500,000 are irreversibly blind.
In its early stages, trachoma leads to conjunctivitis (pink eye). Early symptoms begin to appear within five to 12 days of exposure to the bacterium. These symptoms can include mild itching and irritation of the eyes and eyelids, and a discharge from the eyes.
As the infection progresses, it causes eye pain and blurry vision. If the infection is untreated, scarring occurs inside the eyelid. This leads to the eyelashes turning inward toward the eye. This condition is called trichiasis. The eyelashes brush and scratch against the cornea, the front of the eye. This continual irritation turns the cornea cloudy. It can lead to the development of corneal ulcers and vision loss.
Having one episode of trachoma usually does not cause lasting problems. But repeated infections lead to the scarring and blinding complications. Generally, it takes years before trachoma can cause signficant vision loss.
“The success of Iraq’s national trachoma programme has shown what can be achieved with national leadership and collaboration”, says the WHO. “Freedom from trachoma will positively impact the lives of the most vulnerable populations now and in the future”.
Iraq established its national trachoma programme in 2012 to coordinate the final domestic push against the disease. A trachoma surveillance system was developed to detect and manage cases within secondary and tertiary eye care facilities, as well as through school pre-enrollment and school eye screening programs. Thousands of refractionists, optometrists, ophthalmologists, specialist eye surgeons and other healthcare staff collaborated in these efforts.
