On every last Sunday of September, World Retina Day is observed. The day aims to seek a cure for Retinitis Pigmentosa and allied diseases.
Eyes are important part of us and the health of our eyes shouldn’t be overlooked or taken for granted. The retina is the thin layer of tissue that lines the back of the eye on the inside.
The function of the retina is to receive light reflected from the lens of the eye. The day has a history and a cause for the celebration.
World Retina Day date back to 1927 and it came to fore in 2003.
World Retina Day-Date
Every year, the last week of September is celebrated as the World Retina Week up till the last Sunday. World Retina Day is celebrated on last Sunday of September to honor PC Gutteridge and the lack of importance given to our eye-sight. In 1927, Gutteridge was murdered and shot twice in his eyes. The reason behind shooting the eyes was because the murderer believed an old superstition that a dead man’s eyes hold the last image he saw in life.
This year, it will be celebrated on September 29.
Significance of World Retina Day
After the murder, Dr Lesley Frederikson, national director of the New Zealand Association of Optometrists said “We’ve learned a great deal more about retinas in the 76 years since that grisly murder – too late to help George, but enough to know how vital a role they play in our sight and how important it is we look after them”.
The day is hence observed to realize the importance of retina in our lives.
The murder left the people in fear and that is when World Retina Day was founded. The goal or aim of the day is to come together and fight blindness.
As per a report by Vision Council of America, about 71 percent of adults wear specs to help their vision.
