Prevalence of Refractive Errors among School Children Aged 5 to 15 Years Old at CHU-IOTA

Introduction: Undetected refractive errors constitute a health problem among school children who cannot take advantage of educational opportunities. The authors studied the prevalence of refractive errors in school children aged 5 to 15 at CHU-IOTA. Patients and Method: This is a prospective, descriptive cross-sectional study carried out in the ophthalmic-pediatrics department of CHU-IOTA, from October to November 2023. Results: We received 340 school children aged 5 to 15, among whom 111 presented ametropia, i.e. a prevalence of 32.65%. The average age was 11.42 ± 2.75 years and a sex ratio of 0.59. The average visual acuity was 4/10 (range 1/10 and 10/10). We found refractive defects: astigmatism 73.87%, hyperopia 23.87% of cases and myopia 2.25%. The decline in distance visual acuity was the most common functional sign. Ocular abnormalities associated with ametropia were dominated by allergic conjunctivitis (26.13%) and papillary excavation (6.31%) in astigmatics;allergic conjunctivitis (9.01%) and papillary excavation (7.20%) in hyperopic patients;turbid vitreous (0.90%), myopic choroidosis (0.45%) and allergic conjunctivitis (0.45%) in myopes. Conclusion: Refractive errors constitute a reality and a major public health problem among school children.

Prevalence of Ocular Trauma at the Reference Health Center (CSREF) of Kati

Introduction: The authors wanted to study the prevalence of ocular trauma in the ophthalmology unit of the CSREF of Kati. Patients and method: This is a retrospective study, covering the period from January to December 2015, carried out in the ophthalmology unit of the CSREF in Kati. Results: The sample consisted of 568 patients, or 6.82% of ophthalmological consultations. Children aged 0 to 14 years accounted for 154 (27.11%) of the trauma cases. Bruises constitute the main circumstance (58.1%) of eye trauma, followed by domestic accidents (15.6%). Closed globe ocular trauma was the main type of trauma (61.6%), followed by ocular adnexal trauma (30.1%) and open globe trauma (8.3%) in which the penetrating wound was the lesion, the least common (2.6%) but the most serious. Medical treatment was the most used therapeutic modality in 82.4% of cases, followed by surgery with 17.6% of cases. The evolution of the lesions after treatment was favorable in 85.6% of cases and unfavorable in 14.4% of cases. Complications were observed in 5.8% of cases and sequelae in 8.6% of cases. Conclusion: Ocular trauma constitutes an important reason for ophthalmological consultation at the CSREF of Kati. The severity of some of these lesions requires frequent recourse to surgery. The complexity of the treatment should encourage us to favor preventive measures.

Ocular Manifestations in Severe Acute Malnutrition in Children under 60 Months in a Secondary Health Center

Introduction: Severe acute malnutrition (SAM) is one of the main public health problems in the world. It is responsible in addition to the general symptoms, vitamin A deficiency which can cause serious eye damage including keratomalacia. This work aims to study possible ophthalmological lesions in severely acutely malnourished children from 0 to 60 months. Patients and Method: This study was carried out in a secondary ophthalmology center. It concerned all severely acute malnourished patients admitted for consultation in the pediatric department. Results: A total of 174 eyes of 87 children aged 0 to 60 months were examined. Two-thirds of the patients were aged between 6 and 18 months. Palpebral lesions are rare, however, we observed 12.64% blepharitis and palpebral dermatitis. Ocular involvement due to vitamin A deficiency was 6.9%, including one case of BITOT SPOT, 4 cases of conjunctival xerosis and one case of keratomalacia. Conclusion: Xerophthalmia is an ocular lesion due to a dietary intake deficient in vitamin A that occurs during severe acute malnutrition. Its occurrence is increasingly rare even in developing countries. However, some cases are observed in practice and may be responsible for profound visual impairments.

Ocular Manifestations in Severe Acute Malnutrition in Children under 60 Months in a Secondary Health Center

Introduction: Severe acute malnutrition (SAM) is one of the main public health problems in the world. It is responsible in addition to the general symptoms, vitamin A deficiency which can cause serious eye damage including keratomalacia. This work aims to study possible ophthalmological lesions in severely acutely malnourished children from 0 to 60 months. Patients and Method: This study was carried out in a secondary ophthalmology center. It concerned all severely acute malnourished patients admitted for consultation in the pediatric department. Results: A total of 174 eyes of 87 children aged 0 to 60 months were examined. Two-thirds of the patients were aged between 6 and 18 months. Palpebral lesions are rare, however, we observed 12.64% blepharitis and palpebral dermatitis. Ocular involvement due to vitamin A deficiency was 6.9%, including one case of BITOT SPOT, 4 cases of conjunctival xerosis and one case of keratomalacia. Conclusion: Xerophthalmia is an ocular lesion due to a dietary intake deficient in vitamin A that occurs during severe acute malnutrition. Its occurrence is increasingly rare even in developing countries. However, some cases are observed in practice and may be responsible for profound visual impairments.