When someone is affected by severe trachoma, or trachomatous trichiasis, it not only impacts the individual with the disease, but also that person’s entire family.
Rahina Zabeirou, a 25-year-old mother, knows this all too well.
Rahina Zabeirou, a 25-year-old mother in Niger, could not afford to travel for treatment of her advanced trachoma. A mobile surgical camp funded by The Carter Center solved her problem. (Photos: The Carter Center)
“I would sometimes scratch my eye all night long without sleeping,” said Rahina, who lives with her husband, Noura, and three small children in Zabouré, a rural village in Niger’s stark Maradi region. “It was so painful that it became difficult for me to take care of my household chores, fetch water, and cook for my family.”
Trachoma is a bacterial infection transmitted by flies, hands, and clothing contaminated by the infection. Repeated infections can lead to scarring of the eyelid, which causes the eyelashes to turn inward and scratch the eyeball, which could eventually result in blindness. Because of their traditional role caring for children — who typically carry the most trachoma infection — women are more frequently affected than men.
Despite Rahina’s suffering, her family couldn’t afford to travel to the health center in a far-off city for treatment. She was given a traditional plant-based liquid to rub in her eye, but it didn’t help. Her condition continued to worsen, and she began to lose hope.
Rahina Zabeirou no longer struggles with the pain, discomfort, and potential for blindness that come with the eye disease trachoma.
Then, suddenly, everything changed: A surgery team funded by The Carter Center visited her village in March 2023.
“I was examined,” Rahina recalled, “and they performed an operation on my eyelid and put a bandage on it, which they removed the next day, giving me medication free of charge. They then referred me to the health center, where the (sutures) would be removed after a few days.”
The surgical intervention immediately shifted Rahina from pain and despair to health and hope.
“Since then, I am happy to be in my home, taking good care of my three children and my home,” she said. “Today, I can say thank you to The Carter Center for giving me hope, because I can finally sleep without any major worries. I can't finish without saying that I would ask all women in my situation to seize the hope that The Carter Center holds for us.”
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