JACKSONVILLE, Fla. \u2013 A Jacksonville ophthalmologist is renewing his push to cure one of the world\u2019s most common, and most preventable, causes of blindness, using a model he says could work in communities nationwide.<\/p>\n
Cataracts account for roughly half of all blindness globally, according to health experts, and can often be cured with a single surgery that takes about 10 minutes.<\/p>\n
For Jeffrey Yaple, the impact was immediate.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou don\u2019t feel anything. Not even any discomfort,\u201d Yaple said. \u201cIt went black for a second, I saw a sparkly color \u2014 and then it cleared out. Whoa.\u201d<\/p>\n
Within moments, Yaple said his vision was restored.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere was a time I couldn\u2019t see 30 feet in front of me,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The surgery, performed by Dr. Jeffrey Levenson of Levenson Eye Associates, was provided at no cost through what Levenson calls the \u201cGift of Sight\u201d program.<\/a> It\u2019s a community-based effort offering free cataract surgery to uninsured patients who are legally blind and unable to afford treatment.<\/p>\n \u201cWe do free cataract surgery on people who have no health insurance, who are blind, and who otherwise can\u2019t afford their surgery,\u201d Levenson said.<\/p>\n Levenson estimates the program helps between 50 and 100 people each year. Over more than three decades, he says, the effort has restored sight to thousands of patients in Northeast Florida and across the world.<\/p>\n For Yaple, the surgery was life-changing.<\/p>\n \u201cI can build things now. I fabricate things,\u201d he said. \u201cI built my own pirate treasure chest. I built my own custom electric bicycle. Before, I could hardly do anything.\u201d<\/p>\n