IOSR Journal of Dental and Medical Sciences (IOSR-JDMS) e-ISSN: 2279-0853, p-ISSN: 2279-0861.Volume 17, Issue 6 Ver. 3 (June. 2018), PP 61-66 www.iosrjournals.org DOI: 10.9790/0853-1706036166 www.iosrjournals.org 61 | Page Etiology & Incidence of Blindness around Bhagalpur District of Bihar. Dr. Umashankar Singh 1 Dr. Pummy Roy 2 Dr. Pankaj Kumar 3 Abstract: The Problem of Blindness is as old as mankind itself, while the problem is universal but its magnitude is much larger in India, one fifth of total blind population of the world is believed to be in India . Lack of knowledge about the role of nutrition,personal hygiene, prompt treatment in case of eye injury contributes considerably in multiplying the incidence of avoidable blindness . some believes and practices in certain community of using collegium in the form of kajal or surma coupled with in difference towards personal hygiene also contributes to spread of eye infections in addition to this quackery is rampant all over the country because of inadequate stage of qualified eye care services particularly in rural areas. Whatever services are available those are not near by homes, even manpower resources are being underutiliseddue to rural- urban imbalances thus blindness is one of the most dreadful affliction of human being as not onlyit makes the life measurable but a blind person becomes liability to a family, society and country as a whole . Keywords:VA(Visual Acuity),VI(Visual Impairment).NPCB(National Program For Control OfBlindness),WHO(World Health Organisation),SJED(Social Justice & Empowered Department),ICD(International Classification Of diseases ) --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Date of Submission: 26-05-2018 Date Of Acceptance: 08-06-2018 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I. Introduction From Medical Point of view blindness means lack of perception of light. In ordinary Parlance persons lacking perception of light are said to be “Complete Blind” but there are many others who can perceive light and motion, can count finger at an arm length even they can spot a pin on the floor but fail to see a moving van on the road. This class of people is grouped as “partial Blind” and they also come under the blind from legal point of view.Thus various attempts have been made to give concise and comprehensive definition of blindness, one based on measurement and quantification of visual acuity and visual field&second one based on functional disability alluded to “Economic Blindness” . 1. Associate Professor, Eye department, Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College Bhagalpur 2. Senior Resident, Eye department, Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College & Hospital, Bhagalpur 3. Assistant Professor, Neurosurgery, Jawaharlal Nehru medical college ,Bhagalpur For the first time in 1975 an international standard definition of blindness was developed & included in international classification of diseases-9. Under this classification based corrected visual acuity in the better eye was used to classify visual impairment in five categories, category 1 and 2 complying low vision and category 3,4 & 5 as blindness in which the criteria for blindness were based corrected visual acuity less than 3/60 (snellen or its equivalent or visual field <10 0 around a central fixation in better eye).The Purpose of this classification was to facilitate the collection of information of statistical data on visual impairment and blindness in a uniform manner that may be compared at a global level . Countries were advised to define blindness as per their own socio and economic condition but to report internationally as per ICD-9 categories. In 2002 further convention held for classification of diseases in which classification system retained as ICD-9 only the final diagnosis codes under went a revamp as per ICD-10 convention. Further in 2006 a consultation group constituted by WHO recommended a significant modification to the classification in which definition of blindness remained as ICD-9 but low vision category 1 was replaced by moderate visual impairment and category 2 was replaced by sever visual impairment and this is the current internationally accepteddefinition on blindness and term as modified “ICD-10”. Thus present classification of visual impairment based on ICD-10 2006 revision .