1999 Photo Contest, Science & Technology, 1st prize
Photographer

Michael Amendolia

Time

01 January, 1998

Dr. Sanduk Ruit stops on the way to Gucho to examine two women, including Choki, who has traveled the 120km from her village by horse and cart for an eye operation. Intense ultra-violet radiation at high altitudes in Tibet sears the lenses of the eyes, causing cloudy cataracts and eventual blindness. About 30,000 people in Tibet are believed to have lost their sight as a result of cataracts. Among those over 50, the problem is endemic. Dr. Sanduk Ruit from Nepal is introducing a treatment that not only removes the cataract, but replaces the ruined natural lens with a plastic intra-ocular one. This restores a sharper clarity of vision than previous cures.

About the photographer

Michael Amendolia

Based in Sydney, Australian photographer Michael Amendolia has 27 years experience working for Australian and international magazines, newspapers and companies. His editorial cli...

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