Krishnaiah S, Nirmalan PK, Shamanna BR, Srinivas M, Rao GN, Thomas R. Ocular Trauma in a Rural Population of Southern India.
Ophthalmology 2006;
113:1159-64. [PMID:
16815400 DOI:
10.1016/j.ophtha.2006.02.020]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/22/2005] [Revised: 02/14/2006] [Accepted: 02/14/2006] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVE
To determine the prevalence of ocular trauma and proportion of blindness and visual impairment due to ocular trauma in a rural population of southern India.
DESIGN
Population-based cross-sectional epidemiological study.
PARTICIPANTS
A total of 7771 subjects of all ages, representative of the rural population of Andhra Pradesh.
METHODS
The subjects underwent a detailed interview and comprehensive ocular evaluation as part of the population-based Andhra Pradesh Eye Disease Study.
MAIN OUTCOME
An eye was considered to be blind due to trauma if best-corrected distance visual acuity was worse than 6/60 and the cause was attributed to ocular trauma.
RESULTS
A total of 824 (10.6%) subjects gave a history of ocular trauma in either eye, including 76 (1.0%) persons reporting trauma in both eyes. The overall age- and gender-adjusted prevalence of history of eye injury in this rural population was 7.5% (95% confidence interval [CI], 7.0%-8.1%). Men were more likely to have an eye injury than women (odds ratio [OR], 2.1 [95% CI, 1.8-2.5]). After adjusting for gender and other demographic factors, ocular trauma was significantly more frequent among laborers (OR, 1.5 [95% CI, 1.2-1.7]) when compared with other occupational groups. After adjusting for gender, injury with vegetable matter such as a thorn, branch of a tree, plant secretion, etc. (n = 373 [45.3%]) was the major cause of trauma reported in this population. The majority of the eye injuries occurred at the workplace (n = 461 [55.9%]), followed by home (n = 179 [21.7%]). The majority of those affected (n = 806 [97.8%]) did not wear any eye protection at the time of trauma. A significant proportion (n = 307 [43.1%]) of subjects who sought treatment for an eye injury went to an ophthalmologist. Trauma was responsible for unilateral blindness in 39 subjects, an age- and gender-adjusted prevalence of 0.6% (95% CI, 0.4%-0.8%).
CONCLUSIONS
Most ocular injuries in this rural population occurred at the workplace, suggesting the need to explore workplace strategies to minimize ocular trauma as a priority. Eye care programs targeting high-risk ocular trauma groups may need to consider ocular trauma as a priority in eye health awareness strategies to reduce blindness due to trauma.
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