Awareness and Utilization of Welders' Personal Protective Eye Devices and Associated Factors: Findings and Lessons From a Nigerian Population.

This study assessed commercial welders' awareness and utilization of personal protective eye devices (PPEDs), and their associations, in Enugu, Nigeria, between January and March, 2011. The participants included 343 males, age 33.9 years±10.0 SD years. The participants reported high awareness of welding-associated ocular hazards (99.4%) and PPEDs (75.2%-98.3%), but low PPED possession and utilization rates. Cost and "presumed lack of utility" were the leading barriers to PPED possession; non-utilization was mainly attributed to "user inconvenience" and "presumed lack of protective benefit." PPED utilization was significantly associated with lower educational status (p=.030) and electric welding (p<.0001). The underlying causes are amenable to preventive occupational eye health education, enhanced ergonomics and affordability of PPEDs, and legislative enforcement of their use.