Dr Patricia Bath: Revolutionising Ophthalmology

Dr Patricia Era Bath (1942 - 2019) was a trailblazing African American inventor, humanitarian and ophthalmologist born and raised in Harlem, New York. She was encouraged from an early age to explore different cultures and so asserted throughout her career that her parents were ‘the fuel and engine of my empowerment. My love of humanity and passion for helping others inspired me to become a physician.’ After graduating from high school in only two years and earning awards for scientific research as early as age sixteen, Bath pursued a medical degree and accepted an internship at Harlem Hospital in 1968 before pursuing a fellowship in ophthalmology at Columbia University. It was through her studies here that she discovered and documented that African Americans were twice as likely to suffer from blindness than white patients and eight times more likely to develop glaucoma due to a staggering disparity in access to health care.

Shortly afterwards, when joining the Jules Stein Eye Institute as the first woman, she was offered a small office in the basement but ‘didn’t say it was racist or sexist. I said it was inappropriate and succeeded in getting acceptable office space. I decided I was just going to do my work.’ This work led her to create an innovative, volunteer-based discipline called community ophthalmology under the belief that eyesight is a basic human right regardless of economic status. She utilized volunteers that trained as eye workers to set up senior centers and daycare programs that screened for glaucoma and other severe eye conditions. She even managed to persuade her professors at Columbia to operate on blind patients for free, paving the way for the first major eye operations at Harlem Hospital the same year. Her work helped improve or restore vision to millions of patients worldwide whose problems would otherwise have gone untreated and undiagnosed.

However, Dr Bath is most famously attributed to creating the Laserphaco Probe, a new device which harnessed laser technology to create a less painful, less invasive and more precise technique for cataract surgery. When she first conceived of the device in 1981, her idea was more advanced than the technology available at the time and was met with disbelief and, in some instances, outrage as she shattered the glass ceiling. ‘The narrative of surprise – it has to change. I realize that when I achieve these things it helps what other women and other people of colour, black women, can do. But keep in mind: I never had any doubts’ Bath brought her device all over the world, holding patents in Japan, Canada, Europe and America, writing over 100 research papers and earning numerous awards as a pioneer for optic health. She later founded the non-profit American Institute for the Prevention of Blindness which advances optic health through global initiatives centered on providing grass-root screenings, treatments and education to developing countries. Her drive and dedication was undeniable and, in an interview, Dr Bath described her ‘personal best moment’ when using an implant procedure called keratoprosthesis to restore the sight of a woman in North Africa who had been blind for over 30 years.

Bath claimed many ‘firsts’ in her career including the first African American woman to receive a medical patent and attain many of the highest academic honors in her field. However, she maintained that motherhood was her top priority and also continually advocated for math and science education for girls, determined to remove the obstacles and barriers she encountered in her career and urge young students to believe in the power of their ideas. "Believe in the power of truth," she said. "Do not allow your mind to be imprisoned by majority thinking. Remember that the limits of science are not the limits of imagination."

Cataract Surgery

Cataracts are when the lens in your eye develops cloudy patches which usually get bigger over time and cause blurry or impaired vision and eventually blindness. They are usually age-related and develop in patients over 60 years old. It is hugely debilitating when left untreated as it stops people from performing simple daily activities safely such as driving and cooking. Scientists are still unsure as to what increases your chances of developing cataracts later in life, but studies have shown that factors such as smoking, diabetes, long-term use of steroids, eye injury, drinking excessive amounts of alcohol and/or a family history of cataracts can increase the risk significantly.

Cataracts form because the lens, which usually focuses the light that passes into your eye, becomes less flexible, less transparent and thicker. Then age-related or medical conditions cause tissues within the lens to break down and clump together which clouds small areas within the lens. As the condition develops, the clouding becomes more dense and involves a larger area of the lens and so effectively begins to block and scatter the light that passes through resulting in your vision becoming blurred and distorted. At first, stronger lighting and prescription glasses may help someone to deal with cataracts, but many find that they need surgery as the condition worsens. However, research shows that modern cataract surgery is one of the safest and most effective surgical procedures performed today.

There are two main types of surgical procedures for cataract removal: phacoemulsification or ‘phaco’ and laser cataract surgery which uses a ‘Laserphaco Probe’.

Phacoemulsification uses a high-frequency ultrasound device to break up the cloudy lens into small pieces which are then carefully removed with a suction. The procedure can be performed with very small incisions and so prompts fast healing and reduces the risk of complications. After all remnants of the cloudy lens have been removed, the surgeon will insert a clear lens inside the eye (an intraocular lens) that is positioned securely behind the iris i.e. in the same location your natural lens occupied. The incision is then closed and covered with a protective shield over the eye to ensure a smooth recovery.

The Laserphaco Probe, invented by Dr Patricia Bath, is a very similar procedure but uses laser technology to break apart the cloudy lens which allows for a much more effective removal. The device utilizes a system of lasers, suction and irrigation to remove the clouded lens and replace it with the intraocular lens (IOL). This provides a non-invasive, permanent and virtually painless solution to cataracts and so is now used in hospitals on a global scale!

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