• During the 2006-2007 fiscal year, the Foundation
screened over 15,000 Missouri children in an effort
to detect those at risk for potentially blinding
eye diseases like amblyopia, commonly known as
lazy eye.
• During a vision screening, a photo-refractive
camera is used to take a picture of the child’s
eyes. The procedure is non-invasive and produces
a Polaroid picture that is studied by volunteer
eyecare professionals. These professionals can
identify which children might be at risk for vision
problems by studying the red-eye pattern that develops
in the child’s pupil in these photos.
• Some procedures that are covered under the
Foundation Eyecare Assistance Program include:
visits to the eye doctor’s office, diagnostic
testing and minor eye care procedures.
• The Foundation first guides applicants to
its Eyecare Assistance program through the process
of applying for government aid. In order to qualify
for the Foundation’s program, applicants
must not be able to receive government aid.
• The Foundation receives approximately 80,000
pairs of used eyeglasses each year that it passes
onto medical mission groups for delivery to third
world countries.
• Recently, eyeglasses recycled by the Missouri
Lions Eye Research Foundation have gone to: Ecaudor,
Panama, Africa and Cambodia.
• Glaucoma is a “sneak thief” of
sight that gradually robs its victim’s vision.
An increase in fluid pressure within the eye causes
a gradual tunnel vision effect. The onset of glaucoma
can be slow and not easily noticeable to those
suffering from the disease. Vision that is lost
to glaucoma cannot be regained.
• The Foundation attempts to target its glaucoma
screenings in areas of the state where people are
less likely to go to an eye care specialist to
receive a glaucoma test.
• The cornea, or clear outer window of the
eye, is the most commonly used ocular tissue for
transplant. Cornea transplants are one of the oldest
and most common forms of transplant surgery.
• The Heartland Lions Eye Banks is composed
of seven branches in three states. In Missouri,
our eye banks are located in Columbia, Springfield,
St. Louis, Kansas City and Joplin. We also have
branches out of state in Springfield, Illinois
and Hays, Kansas.
• In July 2004, the Heartland Lions Eye Banks
became a substation of the National Disease Research
Interchange, a non-profit organization that provides
tissue to medical researchers. This new partnership
has allowed the Eye Bank to provide even more tissue
for study in the treatment of blinding eye disease.
