Prevalence and causes of visual impairment and blindness among school children in Muzaffarabad, Pakistan
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.18203/issn.2454-2156.IntJSciRep20181393Keywords:
Visual impairment, Blindness, Prevalence, School-based, Ocular epidemiology, MuzaffarabadAbstract
Background: Vision loss in childhood has serious implications in all stages of child’s growth and development. It poses social, educational and occupational challenges, with affected children being at greater risk of developing behavioral, psychological and emotional problems, lower self-esteem and poorer social integration. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence and identify the causes of visual impairment and blindness in school children of UC Gojra, Muzaffarabad, Pakistan so that prevention strategies could be implemented.
Methods: This was a school-based descriptive cross-sectional study conducted among public and private schools. A multi-stage stratified random sampling technique was used for selecting study participants aged 5-20 years from 24 schools in Muzaffarabad. The vision of school children was examined for visual acuity using standard Snellen chart. Those participants who had visual acuity of <6/18 in either eye underwent a more detailed ophthalmic examination to diagnose the causes of VI. An exploration of demographic variables was conducted using Chi-square test.
Results: The mean age of participants was 10±2.83. The prevalence of visual impairment was 19.6% and 2.3% for severe visual impairment. The age group most affected by VI was 11-15 years (74.2%). There were increased chances of developing VI with advancing age of the participants. Males contributed 88.7% of the cases of VI while females contributed only 11.3%. The class category 5-6 had higher percentage of VI cases (32.7%). Public schools contributed 52.8% of the cases of VI while for private schools the corresponding percentage was 47.2%. The leading cause of VI was refractive error (89.3%) followed by amblyopia (5.0%). Other causes of VI included cataract (1.2%), corneal disease (1.8%), strabismus (1.8%) and nystagmus (0.6%).
Conclusions: There is a need to implement school health policy on visual screening prior to admissions in schools and annual eye screening program for early detection and prompt treatment of eye problems among school children in Muzaffarabad.
Metrics
References
Ajaiyeoba AI, Isawumi MA, Adeoye AO, Oluleye TS. Prevalence and causes of blindness and visual impairment among school children in south-western Nigeria. Int Ophthalmol. 2005;26:121-5.
Darge HF, Shibru G, Mulugeta A, Dagnachew YM. The Prevalence of Visual Acuity Impairment among School Children at Arada Subcity Primary Schools in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. J Ophthalmol. 2017;9326108:1-7.
Bourne RRA, Flaxman SR, Braithewaite T, Cicinelli MV, Das A, Jonas AB, et al. Magnitude, temporal trends, and projections of the global prevalence of blindness and distance and near vision impairment: a systematic and meta-analysis. Lancet Glob Health. 2017;5(9):888-97.
Borurne R, Dineen B, Jadoon Z, Lee PS, Khan A, Johnson GJ, et al. The Pakistan National Blindness and Visual Impairment Survey-Research Design, Eye Examination Methodology and Results of the Pilot Study. J Ophthalmic Epidemiol. 2009;15(5):321-33.
Shah M, Khan M, Khan MT, Khan MY, Nasir S. Causes of Visual Impairment in Children with Low Vision. J Coll Physicians Surg Pakistan. 2011;21(2):88-92.
Hameed A. Screening for refractive errors and visual impairment among school children in Kohat, Pakistan. RMJ. 2016;41(4):437-40.
Vidya R, Kiran KG. Prevalence of Ocular Morbidities of Children in Higher Primary Schools in Rural Areas of Mangalore. Int J Community Med Public Health. 2017;4(8): 2859-63.
Hossaini FS, Naizi AR. A study of visual impairment among primary school children in Heart Province of Afghanistan. J Clin Exp Opthalmol. 2017;8(3):56.
Yamamah GAN, Alim AATA, Mostafa YS, Ahmed RAAS, Mahmoud AM. Prevalence of Visual Impairment and Refractive Errors in Children of South Sinai, Egypt. J Ophthalmic Epidemiol. 2015;22(4):246-52.
Salomao SR, Mitsuhiro MRKH, Belfort R. Visual impairment and blindness an overview of prevalence and causes in Brazil. Annals of Brazilian Acad Sci. 2009;81(3):539-49.
Pi LH, Chen L, Liu Q, Ke N, Fang J, Zhang S, et al. Prevalence of Eye Diseases and Causes of Visual Impairment in School-Aged Children in Western China. J Epidemiol. 2012;22(1):37-44.
Vishnuprasad R, Bazroy J, Madhanraj K, Prashanth HR, Singh Z, Samuel AK, et al. Visual impairment among 10–14‑year school children in Puducherry: A cross‑sectional study. J Family Med Primary Care. 2017;6:58-62.
Barasa E, Otieno SA, Karimurio J. The prevalence and pattern of visual impairment and blindness among Primary School pupils in Kitale Municipality, Kenya. J Ophthalmol Eastern Central Southern Africa. 2013;66-70.
Yared AW, Belaynew WT, Destaye S, Ayanaw T, Zelalem E. Prevalence of Refractive errors among School Children in Gondar Town, Northwest Ethiopia. Middle East Afr J Ophthalmol. 2012;19(4):372-6.
Goh PP, Abqariyah Y, Pokharel GP, Ellwein LB. Refractive error and visual impairment in school-age children in Gombak District, Malaysia. Ophthalmol. 2005;112(4):678-85.
Sapkota YD, Adhikari BN, Pokharel GP, Poudyal BK, Ellwein LB. The Prevalence of Visual Impairment in School Children of Upper-Middle Socioeconomic Status in Kathmandu. Ophthalmic Epidemiol. 2008;15(1):17–23.
