ResearcherID - CLICK HERE Scientific Journal Impact Factor (SJIF-2020) - CLICK HERE

ANALYSIS OF DIFFERENT CAUSES OF BLINDNESS AND VISUAL IMPAIRMENT IN PAKISTANI POPULATION

Dr Muhammad Imran, Dr Syeda Wajeeha Bukhari, Dr Muhammad Ali Hassan Khan

Introduction: Pakistan, the sixth most populous country in the world, is a developing country situated in the World Health Organization's (WHO) Eastern Mediterranean Region. The evidence base on national blindness and visual impairment in Pakistan prior to this survey is extremely limited. One study, estimating the main cause of blindness to be cataract (66.7%). Aims and objectives: The basic aim of the study was to find the causes of blindness and visual impairment in Pakistani population. Methodology of the study: This study was conducted in Nishtar Hospital Multan during 2018 with the permission of ethical committee of hospital. The data was collected from the population of Multan. The data was collected through a structured questionnaire to find the reason and causes of blondness and visual impairment in Pakistani population. Multi‐stage stratified cluster random sampling, with probability proportional‐to‐size (PPS) procedures, was used. Enumeration, using the random walk method, was undertaken until the target number of adults was attained in each cluster. Results: A total of 17 314 adults (⩾30 years) were enumerated, 16 507 (95.3%) of whom were examined and included in this study. Of the study sample, 53.1% were women, their mean age being significantly lower than that of males (45.9 vs 48.9 years, respectively, p<0.001). Initially, all possible pathologies of a reduced visual acuity in eyes that presented with <6/12 vision were recorded by the examining ophthalmologist (total of 14 881 eyes). Conclusion: It is concluded that according to the analysis from this survey and future population dynamics, eye care service delivery needs to continue to expand in Pakistan, focusing principally on high‐quality cataract surgery and aftercare, and on increased capacity for the correction of refractive errors.

FULL TEXT