DR. PREETI BAMHANE

Dr.Priti Singh, Dr. SHEETAL MORSKOLE, DR. NIKITHA ANN PANAKKAL

Abstract

Aim-To screen prevalence of amblyopia and its causes in school children during the amblyogenic period.

Method-A prospective observational cross sectional study was done in 930 students of 5–15 yrs of age for a duration of 6 months in a two tier city.VA tested and Children with defective vision were subjected to ophthalmic examination(slit lamp,orthoptic,fundus ,cycloplegic refraction).

Result-Out of 930 participants,18.8% had defective vision(175) out of which 17.09% had refractive errors(90.8% of the defective vision) and 1.72% had amblyopia(9.1% of defective vision).The main cause of amblyopia was found to be anisometropia(50%) followed by strabismus(25%), ametropia(18.75%) and visual deprivation(6.25%).Prevalence of amblyopia in our study is 1.72% which is higher in low socioeconomic background.

Conclusion-Amblyopia being an important cause of preventable blindness in children, an early diagnosis and its awareness among people can help prevent visual impairment later in life.