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I needed three medications immediately after church service last week. One was for my immediate younger sister, who has an eye problem. Another one, was for our elderly neighbour, who complained of a noise in the right ear. The third medication was for a colleague, who had problem sleeping.
God have mercy! As our Reverend Minister was preaching an Elder sitting near me at the service, was murmuring and urging the Reverend Minister to speak-up because he was not hearing him well. Again he said to no one in particle, “I” cannot even see his face properly.
Wait a minute, I said to myself. Are we not in a church service, but God Almighty could heal us if we have faith. To compound the situation, the portion of the Bible we read was Mark 6:1-17, where Jesus sent his disciples to go into the field to cast out devils and heal the sick.
Mark 6, verse 13 says: “…and they cast out many devils and anointed with oil many that were sick and healed them.”
I said to myself again, we are in the house of God, can’t we obtain healing. Starting from the elder “sitting beside me.”
I veered off suddenly and began reflecting on deafness and blindness, which one is worse. I concluded that blindness is worse, but the debilitating destroyer of life is when the 2 are combined which we medically call deaf blindness. Hence this article.
Prof Karen Hoang in his exhortation said and I quote “ while God may use the resources of this world to help us, ultimately, victory over our problems, comes from Him. Whether he gives us a resolution or the Grace to endure, we can trust that He will be to us all that he says. He is. We do not have to be overwhelmed by our troubles, illnesses etc, but we can face ‘ them with his hope and peace.
Yes, you may say I am preaching. But over the years, if I tell you I had in numerous occasions in my medical practice, wished I could play God and restore the healths of debilitated and moribund patients.
Deaf-blindness is a combination of sight and hearing loss that affects a persons, ability to communicate, access information and get around.
It is also sometimes called “dual sensory loss” or “multi-sensory impairment.” A deaf-blind person won’t usually be totally deaf and totally blind, but both senses will be reduced enough to cause significant difficulties in everyday life.
These problems can occur even if hearing loss and vision loss are mild, as the senses work together and one would usually help compensate for loss of the other.
There are two main types of blindness. Congenital blindness – you are born with sight and hearing impairment, or it becomes apparent within the first two years of life.
This may be because of infection during pregnancy, premature birth, birth trauma (physical injury) and rare genetic conditions (inherited from parent)
Acquired deaf-blindness – you develop sight and hearing loss later in life. Anyone can become deaf-blind at any time through illness, accident, ageing or excessive stress.
Remember when President Buhari developed problem with his hearing. One of the CNN Medical Analysts, Dr Gupta, intoned that he could be suffering from combined deaf-blindness due to excessive stress which must be ruled out.
Sometimes, you can be born with either a hearing impairment only or a vision impairment only, but as you age your other senses also start to change or worsen.
There are more than 70 causes of deaf-blindness. The most common are premature birth and CHARGE Syndrome.
CHARGE Syndrome is a pattern of birth defects that affect the heart, genitals, eyes and ears, among other areas.
Several other disorders you are born with or inherit can cause deaf-blindness, including. Usher Syndrome – this causes ear abnormalities and eye disease which lead to hearing and vision loss that gets worse over time.
Down syndrome: People with Down syndrome are at higher risk for birth defects and other problems that cause hearing and vision loss.
We also have Stickler Syndrome – This is a group of genetic conditions that lead to a distinct facial appearance along with eye and ear problems.
Dandy-Walter syndrome is also a condition that results in a part of your brain called the cerebellum, not developing properly. Among other problems, it can cause fluid to build up and put pressure on the brain hence later in life blindness and hearing loss result.
A person who is deaf-blind will not usually be totally deaf and totally blind, but both senses will be reduced enough to cause difficulties with daily activities.
The hearing and/or vision problems may be present from birth, but in many cases one or both problems develop gradually as a person gets older and they may not notice it themselves at first.
Hearing loss can occur from birth or may develop gradually some of the signs of hearing loss may include
Not hearing you, if you speak to them from behind.
Needing to turn up the volume on the television, radio or phone. Like my Elder in the church who was urging our Reverend Minister to speak up.
Difficulty following a conversation, particularly if several people are speaking or the person they are speaking to is unfamiliar.
Not hearing noises around them such as a knock at the door or the doorbell ringing.
Asking others to speak loudly, slowly and more clearly like my Elder.
Leaning in very close to hear what is being said.
If someone already has a hearing problem, for example, they wear a hearing aid or use sign language. Keep an eye out for signs of vision that could develop, such as vision loss, which can also be present from birth or develop later on.
•Problems seeing in low light or bright light.
•Difficulty recognising people they know.
•Finding it hard to read facial expressions.
•Relying on touch to find and identify items more than usual.
• Needing to hold books or newspapers close to their face, or sitting near the television.
• Difficulty moving around unfamiliar places, they may bump into or trip over things regularly.
•Not looking directly at you or making proper eye contact.
If a person already has a problem with their vision for example, they wear glasses, use a cane to get around or have a condition such as glaucoma “or” cataracts. Please keep an eye out for signs of hearing problems that could develop.
Deaf-blindness may be detected soon after a baby is born or after tests carried out later in life. If it isn’t and you are concerned about your baby, talk to your Doctor.
Deaf-blindness is more common in older people, it is important to have routine eye tests normally every two years. You can ask your doctor for a hearing test at any time, if you think you are losing your hearing.
If you have both vision and hearing impairment or deafness, you are identified with deaf-blindness, you should have regular checks afterwards, as the level of care and support you need might change depending on how severely each sense is affected.
Remember, another term may be used to describe your condition. This may be dual sensory impairment, multi-sensory impairment or that you have a vision and hearing impairment.
As soon as deaf-blindness has been identified, a specialist assessment should be arranged by the consulting doctor.
The assessment should only be carried out by a specially trained professional, who is able to identify the deaf blind people’s abilities and needs.
The assessment should include assessing their needs in relation to:
•Communication
•One-to-one human contact
•Social interaction
•Emotional wellbeing
•Support with mobility
•Assistive technology
•Rehabilitation
The assessment will also take into account the person’s current needs and those that develop in the future.
It is not always possible to treat the underlying causes of deaf-blindness, but a range of care and support services are available to help people with the condition.
The care plan for deaf-blindness should be tailored to individual needs and will include:
•To preserve and maximise any remaining sensory functions the person has.
•To teach the person, alternative communication methods such as the deaf-blind manual.
•To help the person retain as much independence as possible, for example, by recommending that they receive training to use a long cane or guide dog or through the provision of a communicator guide.
For young children ensure their educational needs are met.
Always be medically guided.
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