Comparative Analysis of the Impact of Visual Impairment on Quality of Life of Patients Attending a Tertiary Hospital in South East, Nigeria.

BACKGROUND: Quality of life (QoL) is defined as an "individual's perception of their position in life in the context of the culture and value system in which they live and in relation to goals, expectations, standards, and concerns." Visual Impairment affects QoL because of the restrictions it imposes on everyday life activities. AIMS: This study aims to compare the QoL of visually impaired patients attending the Eye Clinic of Federal Medical Centre, Owerri with that of normally sighted persons. The findings will aid the formulation of policies guiding the management of visually impaired patients. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This was a hospital-based case-control study which recruited all consenting new patients with visual impairment, and age, and sex-matched controls who presented at the Eye Clinic, Federal Medical Centre, Imo State, Nigeria during the period of the study. Data was collected using a semi-structured closed-ended questionnaire, and the World Health Organization QoL-BREF and analyzed with the Statistical Package for Social Science version 22. RESULTS: Four hundred and two participants were recruited. Lower scores were recorded in all the quality of life (QoL) domains for the visually impaired compared with controls. The overall QoL and health status mean score for the visually impaired (61.10 ± 19.75) was significantly lower than that for the controls (70.90 ± 21.19) at P < 0.001. Severity of visual impairment at P < 0.001 significantly affected all the QoL domains for the visually impaired with the lowest score noted among the blind (58.21 ± 11.63) compared to controls (79.33 ± 11.74). Occupation and educational level significantly affected the QoL of the study group but not the controls. CONCLUSION: Visual impairment significantly reduces the QOL of patients. Policies targeted at enhancing the QoL of the visually impaired through rehabilitation and societal integration is recommended.

Visual Impairment among Commercial Motorcyclists

Background: Normal vision is a universal requirement for safe riding of motorcycles. This study aims to determine the prevalence of visual impairment among commercial motorcyclists in Benin City; Nigeria. Method: This is a prospective cross sectional study carried out in Oredo Local Government Area (LGA) of Benin City. Each motorcycle park was taken as a cluster; and all motorcyclists in that park had structured questionnaires administered to them. One hundred and forty three commercial male motorcyclists in eleven motorcycle parks in Oredo LGA were subsequently examined with Snellen's chart or illiterate E chart as applicable. The main outcome measures eligibility for driver's licence on account of vision test as required by the Federal Road Safety Corps of Nigeria. Results: Ninety eight point six percent (98.6) of those examined had acceptable driving vision requirement according to Federal Road Safety Corps. One point four percent (1.4) had subnormal visual acuity; while 5.3had refractive errors. Ocular pathologies were found in 11.5of the eyes examined. Conclusion: Most commercial motorcyclists may pass the Federal Road Safety Corps. However Colour vision and visual field testing may give a more reliable result

Non-traumatic Ocular Findings in Industrial Technical Workers in Delta State, Nigeria.

PURPOSE: To determine the pattern of non-traumatic ocular disorders in industrial technical workers in the Delta state, Nigeria. METHODS: A cross-sectional study of the pattern of non-traumatic ocular disorders among industrial technical workers in 3 factories in Ughelli North local Government Area of Delta state, Nigeria was conducted between February, 2002 and May, 2002. In addition to the demographic, the workers were studied for the presence of any non-trauma related ocular findings. Visual acuity of these workers was obtained as well as ocular examination was performed by using the Snellen's chart, pen torch, ophthalmoscope, Perkins hand-held tonometer, Ishihara plates. Patients were refracted if their visual acuity was less than normal. RESULTS: Five hundred technical workers were screened that included 200 (40%) from the construction industry, 180 (36%) from the rubber factory and 120(24%) from the oil mill. All the workers studied were males. Ocular disorders were seen in 664 (66.4%) of the eyes. The most common ocular disorders were pingueculum 215 (21.5%), presbyopia 97 (9.7%), refractive error 94 (9.4%), pterygium 86 (8.6%) and chronic conjunctivitis 45 (4.5%). None of the workers was blind from non-traumatic causes. Only 36 (7.2%) workers wore any protective eye devices at work. CONCLUSION: Non-traumatic ocular disorders are common in the industrialized technical workers in the Delta state of Nigeria. The use of protective eye devices is low in these workers and suggests that measures to implement ocular safety should be undertaken in these industries.

Non-traumatic ocular findings in industrial technical workers in Delta State; Nigeria

Purpose: To determine the pattern of non-traumatic ocular disorders in industrial technical workers in the Delta state; Nigeria. Methods: A cross-sectional study of the pattern of non-traumatic ocular disorders among industrial technical workers in 3 factories in Ughelli North local Government Area of Delta state; Nigeria was conducted between February; 2002 and May; 2002. In addition to the demographic; the workers were studied for the presence of any non-trauma related ocular findings. Visual acuity of these workers was obtained as well as ocular examination was performed by using the Snellen's chart; pen torch; ophthalmoscope; Perkins hand-held tonometer; Ishihara plates. Patients were refracted if their visual acuity was less than normal. Results: Five hundred technical workers were screened that included 200 (40) from the construction industry; 180 (36) from the rubber factory and 120(24) from the oil mill. All the workers studied were males. Ocular disorders were seen in 664 (66.4) of the eyes. The most common ocular disorders were pingueculum 215 (21.5); presbyopia 97 (9.7); refractive error 94 (9.4); pterygium 86 (8.6) and chronic conjunctivitis 45 (4.5). None of the workers was blind from non-traumatic causes. Only 36 (7.2) workers wore any protective eye devices at work. Conclusion: Non-traumatic ocular disorders are common in the industrialized technical workers in the Delta state of Nigeria. The use of protective eye devices is low in these workers and suggests that measures to implement ocular safety should be undertaken in these industries

A review of the risk factors in primary open angle glaucoma.

The aetiology of primary open-angle glaucoma is still uncertain. However certain factors are known or suspected of having an aetiologic role. These are known as the risk factors. These include higher intraocular pressures, black race, old age especially after the age of 40 years, the peculiar larger optic disc structure of black people, a positive family history, vascular factors such as systemic hypertension, perfusion pressure, vasospasm, atherosclerosis and acute hypotension which is a risk factor for normal-tension glaucoma. Others are diabetes, which is prone to selection bias, myopia, a history of typical migraine headaches, thinner central corneal thickness and the ability to taste phenylthiourea. If a particular patient is identified as having one or more of these risk factors, that patient is by definition, at greater risk of developing glaucoma than a patient who does not.

Prevalence of pterygium and pingueculum among motorcyclists in Nigeria.

OBJECTIVES: To find out the prevalence of pingueculum and pterygium among commercial motorcyclists in Benin City, Nigeria and to note any associated or risk factors. DESIGN: A prospective, cross sectional, case control study. SETTING: A local Government Area (Oredo) and University of Benin Teaching Hospital, Benin City, Nigeria. SUBJECTS: One hundred and forty four commercial male motorcyclists in motorcycle parks in the local Government area and a control group of 114 male indoor workers. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Presence of pterygium or pingueculum. RESULTS: One hundred and forty four male motorcyclists formed the subjects of this study. The age range was 18 to 65 years with a mean age of 34.9 +/- 8.0 years. The total number of motorcyclists with pingueculum was 37 with 26 bilateral cases, 63 eyes were involved. The prevalence rate was 25.7%. Pterygium was present in 18 patients including 12 bilateral cases making a total of 30 eyes. The prevalence rate was 12.5% The total number of indoor workers with pingueculum was 24 and it was present in 46 eyes. The prevalence rate was 21.05%. Pterygium was present in 12 eyes of nine persons in the control group and the prevalence rate was 7.9%. There was no association between the duration of work as a commercial motor cyclist and the presence of a pterygium or a pingueculum. The usage of a hat/cap was found to have a protective effect as motorcyclists who do not wear hats are more likely to develop pingueculum than those who wear them. The use of glasses and hats together was found to be protective against the development of pingueculum and pterygium in this study. CONCLUSION: The prevalence rate of 12.5% of pterygium and 25.7% of pingueculum in commercial motorcyclists in this study is quite high when compared with that of the controls. The wearing of face caps/hats was found to have a protective effect. They should be educated about the importance of wearing protective goggles and caps/brimmed hats.

Bilateral total loss of vision following eclampsia--a case report.

Visual loss following eclampsia is usually reported to be a result of retinopathy, exudative retinal detachment or cortical blindness. This paper reports the case of a 31-year-old para 5 + 0 housewife who developed bilateral visual loss following eclampsia and presented to the ophthalmologist four weeks later with a vision of light perception in both eyes. Examination showed evidence of hypertensive retinopathy. Convinced that the ocular findings were not responsible for such marked visual loss, she was commenced on systemic, topical and sub-conjunctival injection of steroids, acetazolamide and multivitamins. Her vision improved progressively to 6/6 right eye and 6/9 left eye after three weeks. Obstetricians are advised to refer cases of visual loss following eclampsia promptly to the ophthalmologist who should in turn manage aggressively with systemic, topical and sub-conjunctival steroids.

Orbitocephalic metastases from neuroblastoma: report on three cases.

Three unusual cases of Neuroblastoma with metastasis to the skull and orbit are presented. The bizarre clinical features which make diagnosis and subsequent management difficult are highlighted, suggesting the need for a multi-disciplinary approach.