India is turning to artificial intelligence in a bid to curb the silent spread of glaucoma, a degenerative eye disease that threatens to blind millions amid acute shortages of trained specialists and uneven access to care across the country.
About 12 million people in India are thought to have glaucoma, according to various estimates, with about 1.2 million suffering from blindness related to the disease, accounting for 5.5 per cent of all blindness cases nationwide.
The disease damages the optic nerve, often without noticeable symptoms, leading to loss of vision if left untreated. The condition’s asymptomatic nature makes early detection challenging, as patients often assume their vision is normal even as nerve damage is already taking place.
“The disease is becoming a menace because a lot of cases are probably going undetected,” said Anand Sivaraman, founding director of Remidio, a company developing AI-driven glaucoma detection systems.
People across South and Southeast Asia are more vulnerable to the condition because generally they have smaller eyes than Caucasians, which can affect fluid damage that gradually leads to the condition, according to Sivaraman.
Asia is expected to see a significant rise in glaucoma cases, with an estimated 27.8 million additional cases by 2040, studies have shown. According to the World Health Organization, glaucoma is the most common cause of irreversible blindness across the globe.
