Cataracts cure not popular

JAKARTA (JP): Health Minister Sujudi estimates that, of the 250 new cataract patients in Indonesia each year, only 50 can afford to undergo surgery for the condition.

The minister says there are now 1.6 million Indonesians suffering from cataracts who have not undergone any form of surgery.

Speaking at the opening of the eighth International Conference on Cataracts in Bali on Friday evening, Sujudi said that the implant method of cataract treatment is not popular in Indonesia because it is expensive. Only five percent of Indonesians undergoing cataract surgery can afford the implant operation, he added, as quoted by Antara.

Experts from the United States, Japan, Australia, Singapore, India, Malaysia and Indonesia are discussing 25 papers at the three-day conference. (sim)