Does Training Clinic Nurses to Test Pinhole Visual Acuity as a Screen for Glaucoma Increase Glaucoma Referrals to Eye Care Professionals? A Pilot Study in Malawi

Introduction: Refractive error is a common cause of amblyopia. Objective: To determine prevalence of amblyopia and the pattern and the types of refractive error in children with amblyopia in a tertiary eye hospital of Nepal. Materials and methods: A retrospective chart review of children diagnosed with amblyopia in the Nepal Eye Hospital (NEH) from July 2006 to June 2011 was conducted. Children of age 13+ or who had any ocular pathology were excluded. Cycloplegic refraction and an ophthalmological examination was performed for all children. The pattern of refractive error and the association between types of refractive error and types of amblyopia were determined. Results: Amblyopia was found in 0.7 % (440) of 62,633 children examined in NEH during this period. All the amblyopic eyes of the subjects had refractive error. Fifty-six percent (248) of the patients were male and the mean age was 7.74 ± 2.97 years. Anisometropia was the most common cause of amblyopia (p < 0.001). One third (29 %) of the subjects had bilateral amblyopia due to high ametropia. Forty percent of eyes had severe amblyopia with visual acuity of 20/120 or worse. About twothirds (59.2 %) of the eyes had astigmatism. Conclusion: The prevalence of amblyopia in the Nepal Eye Hospital is 0.7%. Anisometropia is the most common cause of amblyopia. Astigmatism is the most common types of refractive error in amblyopic eyes. Nepal J Ophthalmol 2013; 5(9):38-44 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3126/nepjoph.v5i1.7820

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Effects of spectacles and telescopes on visual function in students with oculocutaneous albinism

African Health Sciences ◽

10.4314/ahs.v20i2.28 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 20 (2) ◽

pp. 758-767

Author(s):

Siddeeqa Jhetam ◽

Khathutshelo P Mashige

Keyword(s):

Visual Acuity ◽

Contrast Sensitivity ◽

Reading Rate ◽

Oculocutaneous Albinism ◽

Eye Care ◽

Significant Difference ◽

Observational Study Design ◽

The Mean ◽

Better Than ◽

Spectacle Correction

Purpose: To investigate the effects of spectacle and telescope corrections on visual acuity (VA), contrast sensitivity (CS) and reading rates (RR) in students with oculocutaneous albinism (OCA). Methods: An observational study design was conducted on 81 students with OCA. Distance and near VA, CS and RR were measured without correction, with spectacle correction and with a combination of spectacle correction and telescopes. Results: The mean distance and near VA values with a combination of spectacle correction and telescopes were significantly better than those without correction and with spectacle correction alone (p = 0.01). Mean CS values achieved with spectacles alone were significantly better than those obtained with a combination of spectacles and telescopes (p = 0.01). There was no significant difference between logCS values obtained without correction compared to those obtained with a combination of spectacle correction and telescopes. There were no significant differences between RR values obtained with a combination of spectacles and telescopes and those without and with spectacle correction alone (all p > 0.05). Conclusion: This article provides valuable information to eye care practitioners on the effects of spectacles and telescopes on visual acuity, contrast sensitivity and reading rate in students with OCA. Keywords: Oculocutaneous albinism; visual acuity; telescope; contrast sensitivity; reading rate.

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Prevalence of severe visual impairment and barriers to access eye care services in the Udupi district

Asian Journal of Ophthalmology ◽

10.35119/asjoo.v17i4.291 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 17 (4) ◽

pp. 343-355

Author(s):

Lavanya G. Rao ◽

Dushyanth Sharma ◽

Sulatha V. Bhandary ◽

Divya Handa ◽

Yogish Kamath

Keyword(s):

Health Care ◽

Visual Acuity ◽

Confidence Interval ◽

Visual Impairment ◽

Tertiary Care ◽

Eye Care ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Care Services ◽

Care Facilities ◽

Lack Of Knowledge

Aim: To assess the prevalence of severe visual impairment (SVI) and reasons for not accessing eye care services in a field practice area of a tertiary care hospital. Study design: Cross-sectional observational study. Materials and methods: Through a cross-sectional study using simple random sampling, a total of 1510, individuals above 18 years of age, from six rural and maternity welfare centers (RMCW) within a distance of 20 km from a tertiary hospital were approached. All participants underwent basic assessment of visual acuity, anterior segment evaluation using torch light, and answered a structured questionnaire on eye care. Results: Of 1510 subjects, 267 had SVI (defined as visual acuity < 6/60 either in one or both eyes) with a prevalence of 17.7%. SVI was higher among men and those above 60 years of age (52.8%). Significant association was found between barriers to accessing eye care facilities and lack of knowledge to access health care (p = 0.004), lack of financial support (95% CI, p = 0.006), and social reasons (95% CI, p = 0.028). Prevalence of SVI among diabetics was 32.7% as compared to non-diabetics (OR: 2.630; 95% confidence interval: 1.864–3.712), and among hypertensives was 34.61% as compared to non-hypertensives (OR: 2.836; 95% confidence interval: 1.977–4.068). Conclusion: In spite of being close to a tertiary care center, a prevalence of SVI in 17.7% of this population indicates a lack of knowledge regarding the importance of self-health care in subjects. This emphasizes the need to increase the awareness among the general public to access the ophthalmic health care facilities in order to improve the ocular health of the patients.

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Topical-intracameral anesthesia in manual small incision cataract surgery: A pilot study in a Tertiary Eye Care Center in Africa

Nigerian Journal of Clinical Practice ◽

10.4103/1119-3077.175972 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 19 (2) ◽

pp. 201

Author(s):

O Okoye ◽

NJ Uche ◽

OI Okoye ◽

O Arinze ◽

NN Okoloagu

Keyword(s):

Pilot Study ◽

Cataract Surgery ◽

Care Center ◽

Eye Care ◽

Small Incision Cataract Surgery ◽

Small Incision

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Characterization of Visual Acuity and Contrast Sensitivity using Head-Mounted Displays in a Virtual Environment: A Pilot Study

Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meeting ◽

10.1177/1071181319631488 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 63 (1) ◽

pp. 547-551

Author(s):

David Sproule ◽

Rosemarie Figueroa Jacinto ◽

Steve Rundell ◽

Jacob Williams ◽

Sam Perlmutter ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Visual Acuity ◽

Virtual Reality ◽

Pilot Study ◽

Contrast Sensitivity ◽

Virtual Environment ◽

Real World ◽

Appropriate Use ◽

Head Mounted Displays ◽

Visualization Tools

Virtual reality (VR) and personal head-mounted displays (HMDs) can be a viable tool for the presentation of scientifically accurate and valid demonstrative data in the courtroom. However, the capabilities and limitations of the technology need to be fully characterized. The current pilot study evaluated visual acuity and contrast sensitivity using two commercially available HMDs (Oculus Rift and HTC Vive Pro). Preliminary findings indicated that visual acuity and contrast sensitivity experienced in VR may be less than what is experienced in real-world scenarios. The current pilot study provides a quantitative approach for characterizing the limitations of VR with respect to visual acuity and contrast sensitivity, and provides recommendations for the appropriate use of this technology when performing forensic investigations and developing visualization tools.

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Lessons from the Visual Acuity Impairment Survey pilot study.

American Journal of Public Health ◽

10.2105/ajph.76.2.160 ◽

1986 ◽

Vol 76 (2) ◽

pp. 160-165 ◽

Cited By ~ 12

Author(s):

F Ederer ◽

D E Krueger ◽

R L Mowery ◽

J Connett ◽

D Wentworth

Keyword(s):

Visual Acuity ◽

Pilot Study

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A pilot study to evaluate incorporating eye care for children into reproductive and child health services in Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania: a historical comparison study

BMC Nursing ◽

10.1186/1472-6955-13-15 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 13 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

Milka Madaha Mafwiri ◽

Rodrick Kisenge ◽

Clare Elizabeth Gilbert

Keyword(s):

Pilot Study ◽

Child Health ◽

Health Services ◽

Dar Es Salaam ◽

Child Health Services ◽

Comparison Study ◽

Eye Care ◽

Historical Comparison ◽

Reproductive And Child Health ◽

And Child Health

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Visual Outcomes of Adding Erythropoietin to Methylprednisolone for Treatment of Retrobulbar Optic Neuritis

Journal of Ophthalmic and Vision Research ◽

10.18502/jovr.v14i3.4786 ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Mostafa Soltan Sanjari ◽

Farzad Pakdel ◽

Fatemeh Moosavi ◽

Niloofar Pirmarzdashti ◽

Marzieh Nojomi ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Visual Acuity ◽

Pilot Study ◽

Optic Neuritis ◽

Visual Outcome ◽

Primary Outcome Measure ◽

Recombinant Erythropoietin ◽

Human Recombinant Erythropoietin ◽

Retrobulbar Optic Neuritis ◽

Group 2 ◽

Group 1

Purpose: To compare the short-term visual function results and safety of erythropoietin as an add-on to the standard corticosteroid therapy in retrobulbar optic neuritis (RON). Methods: In this prospective pilot study, adult patients with isolated RON with less than 10 days of onset were enrolled. Patients were consecutively assigned to standard intravenous methylprednisolone treatment either in combination with intravenous erythropoietin (20,000 units/day for three days) (group-1) or alone (group-2). Primary outcome measure was best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), which was assessed up to 120 days from the day the treatment was begun. Systemic evaluations were performed during and after treatment. Results: Sixty-two patients with RON (mean age = 26.6 ± 5.77 years; range = 18–40 years) were enrolled into the study (group-1, n = 35; group-2, n = 27). BCVA three months after the treatment was 0.19 ± 0.55 logMAR and 0.11 ± 0.32 logMAR in group-1 and group-2, respectively (95% CI: –0.61–0.16; P = 0.62). Change in BCVA after three months was 2.84 ± 3.49 logMAR in group-1 and 2.46 ± 1.40 logMAR in group-2 (95% CI: –0.93–1.91; P = 0.57). Pace of recovery was not significantly different between the groups. No complications were detected among patients. Conclusion: Intravenous erythropoietin as an add-on did not significantly improve the visual outcome in terms of visual acuity, visual field, and contrast sensitivity compared to traditional intravenous corticosteroid. This pilot study supports the safety profile of intravenous human recombinant erythropoietin, and it may help formulate future investigations with a larger sample size.

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