Gucci helps children with vision problems

Thanks to a donation of 9.8 million yuan this year and last year from leading fashion brand Gucci, more than 300 children suffering from a vision disorder called amblyopia, or lazy eye, have received treatment at a Beijing hospital.

The donation was made to the philanthropic China's Children and Teenagers Fund (CCTF) and the Radiant Children's Eye Hospital.

Amblyopia, more commonly known as lazy eye, is a condition that cannot be corrected with glasses or contact lenses.

With this condition, which an estimated 3 percent of children under the age of 6 suffer, the brain does not fully acknowledge the images seen by the affected eye.

The condition usually affects one eye, although it can reduce vision in both eyes.

The Radiant Children's Eye Hospital was established in 2002 in Beijing, and the privately owned hospital specializes in laser treatments for children suffering from amblyopia.

"Gucci's designs are all about vision, and the hospital is curing weak-sighted children, which is meaningful to Gucci," said Gucci CEO Patrizio di Marco.

Gucci owns and operates 29 stores in 19 cities in China.

The fashion house is one of several donors to the amblyopic treatment program of CCTF.

Through donations from around the world, the charity has funded treatments for approximately 3,000 poor-sighted children from impoverished families over the past six years.

(China Daily 08/10/2009 page10)