Overview
Xerophthalmia is pronounced “zeer-of-thal-mee-uh” or “zeer-op-thal-mee-uh.” The Greek root words literally mean “dry eye.”
While the group of conditions that is xerophthalmia includes dry eyes, it covers other signs and symptoms that affect your eyes. Xerophthalmia is caused by a lack of vitamin A and can cause blindness.
The vitamin A deficiency can happen in two ways:
- You don’t get enough vitamin A in your diet.
- Your body can’t use the vitamin A you do get effectively.
How common is xerophthalmia?
According to the World Health Organization, there are some 254 million children worldwide with vitamin A deficiency. There are about 2.8 million children with xerophthalmia. In addition, it causes about 350,000 cases per year of childhood blindness, making it the leading cause of blindness in children.
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