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Visual Impairment among Public School Children in the Biadan and Kato Circuits in the Berekum Municipality, Bono Region, Ghana
Authors: Elizabeth Mana Akpakli, Alvin Jeffrey Munsamy
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The aim of the study was to determine the prevalence and causes of visual impairment (VI) among primary school children in the Biadan and Kato circuits in the Berekum Municipality, Bono Region, Ghana. A cross-sectional and a two-stage random sampling technique was employed to recruit 299 study participants. Visual acuity, retinoscopy, examination of the anterior segment, media and fundus were conducted on each participant. A modified refractive error survey in children (RESC) protocol was used in collecting data. A presenting visual acuity of ≤ 6/12 in the better eye was diagnosed as having VI with a cause. Prevalence was estimated, and binary logistic regression was used to determine the strength of the association between visual impairment and independent variables at a 95 % confidence interval. Two hundred and ninety-five (295) children with a mean age of 10.08 ± 2.18 years were able to go through all examinations. The prevalence of VI was 8.14 %. Twenty-four children were visually impaired, of whom 17 (70.83 %) were females and 7 (29.17 %) were males. Refractive error was the cause in 67 % of visually impaired children, cataracts in 8 %, and amblyopia in 4 %. Age was found to be associated with VI (OR=0.77; 95 % CI:0.63-0.95), while gender showed no association. Uncorrected refractive error is a common cause of VI among school children in the Biadan and Kato circuits. Age was negatively associated with visual impairment, suggesting the vulnerability of younger school children. Early detection and provision of affordable eye health services may help curb preventable VI.