Progress reported in retinitis program ...Thanks to the development of a national program for the early diagnosis of retinitis pigmentosa Retinitis Pigmentosa Definition Retinitis pigmentosa (RP) refers to a group of inherited disorders that slowly lead to blindness due to abnormalities of the photoreceptors (primarily the rods) in the retina. in Cuba, treatments are more efficient and patients have been able to improve the quality of their life, reports program director Obel Garcia Baez. In a Nov. 16 article, he told Granma the disease's prevalence had jumped from 1.4% of the population in 1990 to 4.4% in 2004. This figure includes 2,718 men and 2,378 women with higher rates in the eastern Cuban provinces of Granma, Las Tunas Cuba:
Retinitis pigmentosa is a degenerative, genetic disease that causes the progressive death of ocular ocular /oc·u·lar/ (ok´u-lar) 1. of, pertaining to, or affecting the eye. 2. eyepiece. oc·u·lar adj. 1. Of or relating to the eye or the sense of sight. cells called photoreceptors Photoreceptors Specialized nerve cells (rods and cones) in the retina that are responsible for vision. Mentioned in: Macular Degeneration resulting in increasing loss of eyesight. |
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