Albinism is a genetic disorder in which a person has a lack of melanin pigment. People affected with this disorder has little to no pigments in their hair, skin and eye. One person out of seventeen thousands has this disorder. Here are some facts about albinism.
- Eye color in albinism: The eyes of such a person appear either blue, red or purple, as these people have no melanin in their eyes.
- Albinism and vision: Melanin is important for the development of the retina. So the people affected with albinism have problems in vision. Like sensitivity to bright light, rapid eye moments and misalignment of eyes.
- Types of Albinism: In terms of physical expression, there are two types of albinism. In one type, which is called as oculocutaneous albinism, when a person lacks pigment in eye, skin and hair. In another type, Ocular albinism, only eyes is affected and hair and skin are normal in color.
- Confirmation of albinism: Confirmation of albinism is done through genetic testing. There is no cure for albinism, however some measures can be taken to improve the quality of life of patients. The disease does not spread through blood transfusion of body contact, as it’s a hereditary problem.
- Albinism in other creatures: Not just the human, but animals and plants also suffer from this genetic disorder. In albino plants, chlorophyll is lacking and they have very short life. In animals, albinism is not really fatal.