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.

Knowledge and impact of diabetes in patients in a tertiary clinic in Southeast Nigeria

Diabetes mellitus is a chronic non-communicable disease (NCD) of public health importance; as it has become a global epidemic requiring the efforts of caregivers and patients for effective management and prevention. This has necessitated the inclusion of diabetes education as an essential component of diabetes care. The aim of this study was to determine the knowledge of diabetes and the impact of this knowledge on patient management; with a view to making recommendations on how to improve management and treatment outcomes. This was a prospective cross-sectional study including all previously diagnosed patients with diabetes who attended the Outpatient Endocrinology Clinic of the Department of Internal Medicine; Federal Medical Centre; Owerri; Imo state; Nigeria during the period of the study. One hundred and three (103) subjects consisting of 44 males and 59 females aged 20-80 years participated in the study. Most had had diabetes for 5 years or less; and about 40% did not know what diabetes meant. Approximately 80% knew the names of their drugs. Diet was the only lifestyle modification adopted by the respondents. They had good social disclosure attitudes. In conclusion; the patients displayed a good knowledge of the drugs used in their management; and a positive impact of their knowledge in the area of diet control and disclosure attitudes. There was still a poor knowledge of the cause of diabetes; which cannot easily be overlooked; as it is significant to the total management of the patient. A nationally adopted programme of structured education for people with diabetes is recommended

The knowledge and attitude of non-ophthalmic medical doctors towards glaucoma in two tertiary institutions in south eastern Nigeria.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: This study is aimed at determining how much knowledge of glaucoma the non-ophthalmic medical doctors still possess and their personal attitudes toward glaucoma. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Self- administered questionnaires were randomly distributed to the non-ophthalmic medical doctors in two specialist hospitals in south eastern Nigeria: The data obtained were the age, sex, professional and number of years of practice of the participants, their knowledge of the symptoms/ aetiology/risk factors, examination/investigation, treatment of glaucoma as well as their personal attitude towards glaucoma. RESULTS: There were two hundred respondents; one hundred and forty two males and fifty eight females (M:F=2.4:1); comprising 82.5% Resident doctors; 51% of whom had been in practice for less than 5 years.All the doctors had heard of glaucoma; approximately seventy two per cent (72.5%) had a good knowledge of glaucoma symptoms and 52.0% of these had been in practice for only 5 years or less. Similarly, of the 83% of the doctors who correctly answered the questions on the aetiology of glaucoma, majority (84.3%) had been in practice for 5 years or less. Only 24.5% and 38.5% respectively of the doctors had a good knowledge of the basic examination and treatment required for the management of glaucoma.There was no statistically significant relationship between most variables tested. Only the relationship between the knowledge of the symptoms of glaucoma and the duration of practice of the doctors was statistically significant (p< 0.005). CONCLUSION: Most of the non-ophthalmic medical doctors have a basic knowledge of glaucoma and how to investigate it but showed a poor knowledge of examination and treatment modalities. They also acknowledged the importance of regular eye checks but only very few had had their eyes examined.

Visual defects and commercial motorcycle accidents in south eastern Nigeria.

BACKGROUND: Commercial motorcyclists are a regular part of our highways, especially with the decrease in the number and quality of good roads. This study is aimed at determining the role of vision if any in the increasing number of road traffic accidents (RTA's) among commercial motorcyclists in Enugu metropolis, Nigeria. METHOD: A cross sectional survey with a multi stage random sampling design was used to select the 615 commercial motorcyclists in Enugu metropolis enrolled in the study. RESULT: Out of the 615 motorcyclists, seven (1.14% +/- 0.70%) motorcyclists had visual impairment (< 6/18-3/60). Visual field defect was noted in 2.3% +/- 0.98% while 2.6% +/- 0.98% had colour vision defect. The prevalence of road traffic accident (RTA) was 57.7%. Visual impairment was not significantly associated with RTA (P = 0.333) while visual field defect (P = 0.000), and colour vision defect (P = 0.003) were positively associated with RTA. Inexperienced riders had significantly more RTAs than their counterparts (P = 0.000). CONCLUSION; Visual field defect, and colour vision defect were significantly associated with RTA but this finding is in the backdrop of poor training, and inexperience which also significantly affected RTA among the predominantly young riders involved in RTA.