General Information About Trachoma
Disease Details and Frequently Asked Questions
It is an infectious eye disease caused by Chlamydia trachomatis bacteria, causing epidemics especially in regions with inadequate sanitation, causing inflammation of the inner eyelids, and representing the leading cause of preventable blindness worldwide.
It is transmitted with extreme ease and rapidity through direct contact with the ocular or nasal discharges of an infected individual, shared towels/pillows, or via eye-seeking filth flies (houseflies) acting as vectors transporting the pathogen to the eyes of healthy people.
In the initial phases of the disease, mild ocular injection (redness), intense pruritus (itching), lacrimation (tearing), and edema of the eyelids are observed. Elevations termed follicles appear on the tarsal conjunctiva of the inner eyelids.
A single, isolated episode of infection does not induce blindness. When active reinfection occurs repeatedly over years, the palpebral conjunctiva becomes covered in fibrotic scar tissue and undergoes cicatricial contraction. This distortion causes the eyelid margins to turn inward (entropion), and the eyelashes misdirect toward the globe (Trichiasis), scratching the transparent corneal layer like sandpaper with every blink. The scratched cornea undergoes opacification (whitening), leading to permanent blindness.
The diagnosis is confirmed when an ophthalmologist visualizes conjunctival follicles and cicatricial bands (scars) on the inner eyelid using a slit-lamp biomicroscope. In endemic regions, diagnosis is established strictly via clinical examination.
If identified in early stages before structural blindness develops, the bacterium is 100% eradicated and the patient completely cured utilizing merely a single oral dose of Azithromycin or topical ophthalmic ointments. However, if entropion has occurred, the eyelid margin is everted via a simple Surgical procedure to halt mechanical corneal scratching. Routine facial hygiene (washing faces) represents the paramount weapon protecting against this disease.
Our health library contents are prepared for informational purposes only and with scientific data available at the time of recording. For all your questions, concerns, diagnosis, or treatment regarding your health, please consult your doctor or a healthcare institution.
