Eradicating Preventable Blindness In The Developing World

NO EYE LEFT BEHIND

Forus Health is addressing the healthcare delivery crisis in the developing world with innovative, low cost, and portable ophthalmic imaging devices for diagnosing diseases of the eye. Worldwide, approximately 285 million people are visually impaired, and 80% of these cases are the result of preventable causes such as cataracts, diabetic retinopathy and uncorrected refractive errors.¹ This means that roughly 228 million people are suffering from visual impairments that could have been avoided by taking preventative action. Forus Health’s ophthalmic imaging devices are compact, rugged, and designed so a minimally trained technician may operate them in the absence of an ophthalmologist, easing their deployment and use in rural environments. They detect major ailments, such as cataracts, glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy, and cornea problems. Images of patients’ eyes are sent to qualified ophthalmologists using Forus Health’s cloud network, and within a matter of hours the patient receives a report.

In order to continuously observe patients’ eyes without irritation, ophthalmic devices must capture images in both the visible and near-infrared (NIR) spectra. Forus Health’s designs incorporated both stock and custom optical components from Edmund Optics^® (EO) to capture high quality images in both wavelength regions.