Abstract
Objective: The objective of my study was to understand the etiology of blindness among students in school for the visually disable and to evaluate their current blindness status and recommend the best prevention and treatment measures to improve the vision of blind students.
Study design: This was a cross-sectional, descriptive study.
Place and duration of study: The study was conducted in in August 2018 at Shamsabad Rawalpindi Girls College and Government Qandeel Kohati Bazar Rawalpindi High School for the Blinds.
Material and Methods: A total of 254 students of two blind schools were screened for their visual status, by team of ophthalmologist, optometrist and ophthalmic technicians. Impairment of vision VI is classified according to world health organization guidelines. Eye care is provided and students are taught how to change glasses change filters and replace low vision aids (LVAS). School records were also used to determine the significance of impairment of vision in each case. Students requiring eye surgery medical examination or surgical procedure under local and general anesthesia (EUGA) were managed at Benazir Bhutto hospital. SPSS version 22 was used for data analysis.
Results: A total of 254 students—138 girls (54.3%) and 116 males—met the inclusion criteria. ( 45.6%) the average age was 17 years range (4-25 93% of those aged 11 and over). mild blindness occurred in less than 1% of patients moderately decreased vision(MVI) in 35.8% and severe blindness in 42.1%. 24.1% were blind (visual acuity less than 3/60) ,11.1% of whom were no light Perception. Vascular and venous disorders accounted for 45.0% of the research population's etiology of blindness and VI. Forty-five percent of student’s blindness is caused by cataract, glaucoma, strabismus and other reasons. About 85% of cases indicated that switching devices was necessary to obtain a better perspective. The majority of parents of pupils with vision impairments are cousins' spouses. In this study, 69.3% of the pupils had a good family history.
Conclusion: It is true that many patients with VI and blindness are due to failure to prevent it .Burden of blindness can be reduced if timely and appropriate intervention is made. The causes of blindness was diverse amongst our study population. There are certainly lots of issues by which VI and Blindness natural stand causes. If timely interventions done properly and in the earlier stage of diseases like this before they permanently damage a human body, burden for blindness can be reduced to very far extent.
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