Management of Refractive Errors And Low Vision Among Basic School Children in Atwima District

Abstract

The study sought to discuss the management of refractive errors and low vision among basic school children in the Atwima district. A sample of 1,177 public basic school children aged between 5-19 years was randomly selected from ten basic schools for examination. Thirteen key informants in the district were purposively selected from the Ghana Education Service (GES), Ghana Health Services (GHS) and opinion leaders. Data were collected through vision screening of the school children and in-depth interviews with the key informants. The prevalence of refractive errors among the school children was 5.8% while one or more pathological conditions were found in 24.6% of the pupils screened. The commonest ocular condition was allergic conjunctivitis with 12.1% of the children suffering from that disease. Only one pupil (0.1%) suffered from low vision while none was blind in both eyes. The study revealed that there was no eye care professional in the district.

Journal of the Ghana Science Association Vol. 9 (2) 2007: pp. 1-8