PURPOSE: To determine the prevalence of non-vision-impairing ocular conditions (NVIC) and estimate the number of primary eye care treatments per 1000 population per month. METHODS: A cross-sectional study in a random sample of 1670 people was done to determine the load of NVIC in a village in Chakwal district. RESULTS: The prevalence of NVIC was 30.6% (306 per 1000 population). NVIC with the exclusion of presbyopia accounted for 14.6%. The main NVIC were allergic conjunctivitis (3.7%), bacterial conjunctivitis (3.5%), pterygium/pinguicula (2.6%) and acute/chronic dacryocystitis (1%). The average Complaint Frequency (CF) per month/1000 population was 55, excluding complaints of near vision and watery eyes. CONCLUSIONS: The foundation of a comprehensive district eye care strategy in the light of VISION 2020 - the Right to Sight - remains an effective primary eye care service whose elements are treatment of NVIC, detection and referral of cataracts and refractive errors, and promotion of eye health.
PURPOSE: To determine the prevalence of non-vision-impairing ocular conditions (NVIC) and estimate the number of primary eye care treatments per 1000 population per month. METHODS: A cross-sectional study in a random sample of 1670 people was done to determine the load of NVIC in a village in Chakwal district. RESULTS: The prevalence of NVIC was 30.6% (306 per 1000 population). NVIC with the exclusion of presbyopia accounted for 14.6%. The main NVIC were allergic conjunctivitis (3.7%), bacterial conjunctivitis (3.5%), pterygium/pinguicula (2.6%) and acute/chronic dacryocystitis (1%). The average Complaint Frequency (CF) per month/1000 population was 55, excluding complaints of near vision and watery eyes. CONCLUSIONS: The foundation of a comprehensive district eye care strategy in the light of VISION 2020 - the Right to Sight - remains an effective primary eye care service whose elements are treatment of NVIC, detection and referral of cataracts and refractive errors, and promotion of eye health.
Authors: Arthur G Fernandes; Adriana Berezovsky; Sung E S Watanabe; Márcia R K H Mitsuhiro; Marcela C Cypel; Nívea N Ferraz; João M Furtado; Paula Y Sacai; Sergio Muñoz; Cristina C Cunha; Galton C Vasconcelos; Paulo H A Morales; Marcos J Cohen; Jacob M Cohen; Mauro Campos; Rubens Belfort; Solange R Salomão Journal: Sci Rep Date: 2021-12-09 Impact factor: 4.379