Spectrum of visual impairment among urban female school students of Surat

• Published in: Indian journal of ophthalmology Vol. 59; no. 6; pp. 475 - 479
• Main Authors: Basu, Mausumi, Das, Palash, Pal, Ranabir, Kar, Sumit, Desai, Vikas K, Kavishwar, Abhay
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: India Medknow Publications and Media Pvt. Ltd 01.11.2011; Medknow Publications & Media Pvt. Ltd; Medknow Publications; Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications
• Subjects: Academic achievement; Adolescent; Anterior chamber depth; Anthrax; axial length; bleb leak; Blebitis; Blowout; Child; Community Eye care; community-acquired methicillin-resistant Staphyloccus aureus; Cross-Sectional Studies; Data collection; diplopia; Distribution; Early glaucoma; Eye diseases; Eyes & eyesight; Female; Females; Humans; India - epidemiology; Influence; Intrastromal corneal ring segments; keraring; post-LASIK ectasia; lens thickness; microbiology; Morbidity; Myopia; ocular surface diseases; Ocular trauma; open globe injury; orbital cellulitis; Patient outcomes; phacomorphic glaucoma; preoperative visual acuity; preseptal cellulitis; prethreshold retinopathy of prematurity; Prevalence; prism; prognostic factors; Refractive errors; Refractive Errors - epidemiology; relative afferent pupillary defect; retinal nerve fiber layer thickness; retinopathy of prematurity; risk factor; risk factors; Rural areas; Rural schools; Schoolgirls; screening; spectral optical coherence tomography / scanning laser ophthalmoscope; strabismus; Students; Students - statistics & numerical data; survey; Urban Population - statistics & numerical data; Urban schools; Vision Disorders - epidemiology; Vision disorders in children; visual impairments; India
• ISSN: 0301-4738; 1998-3689
• DOI: 10.4103/0301-4738.86317

Eye morbidities with or without symptoms delineate a significant morbidity among adolescent schoolgirls in India. The study was undertaken to assess the extent of visual impairment and ocular morbidity to identify influencing factors and the impact on scholastic performance. A population-based cross-sectional study was undertaken among 3002 urban girl students of Surat in Gujarat, India. Overall prevalence of refractive error was found to be 15.22%; myopia affected 91.47%, hyperopia 4.60%, and astigmatism 0.04%. The prevalence of myopia and astigmatism was more in higher age groups, while hyperopia was more in lower age groups; even students with good vision reported ophthalmic symptoms. Of all spectacle users, in 29.73% cases the eyesight was not found to be with the best possible corrections. Refractive error was observed to be higher among the general caste (50.98%) and among Muslims (54.05%). Still, among those with problems of eyesight, 75.93% students had good academic performance. Associated ocular morbidity was noted in 20.35% participants along with the refractive error. This study highlighted the load of eye morbidities of adolescent Indian urban girls.