Guide to Trachoma control in programs for the prevention of blindness

Historical Significance: Programs for prevention of blindness had their origin in the late 19th century. Military ophthalmia, also called Egyptian ophthalmia and now known as trachoma, was a public health issue in the 19th century. It was a common and acute anterior eye infection that immobilised armies and spread to civilian populations. It is a really important public health issue when whole armies cannot fight because of seriously red and sore eyes! Military ophthalmia was on the agenda of the first meeting the International Congress of Ophthalmology in 1857. In 1929 the Congress's successor body, the International Council of Ophthalmology adopted a public health agenda by forming the International Association for the Prevention of Blindness and the International Organisation against Trachoma. The big prevention of blindness issues at that time were trachoma and onchocerciasis. Trachoma is an infection with Chlamydia trachomatis that causes chronic and severe anterior eye inflammation and scarring of the cornea leading to blindness. The big step forward was in 1975 with the foundation of the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB) by the World Health Organisation. The two senior authors are respectively the Directors of the WHO Collaborating Centre for the Prevention of Blindness and Trachoma in San Francisco, USA, and London, England. The third author was formerly the Program Manager for Prevention of Blindness of the World Heath Organization. See Cat # 3650 for a WHO publication on Trachoma he edited.