Eye Health Issues Among Commercial Motorcyclists In Ilorin, Nigeria.

Abstract

The use of motorcycles by a large number of individuals as a means of commercial transportation in both urban and the rural settings and the attendant risky riding habits of the riders in Nigeria is well documented. The purpose of this study is to determine eye health practices and ocular status of commercial motorcyclist in Ilorin. A cross sectional survey among commercial cyclists in Ilorin West was carried out using a questionnaire instrument. The data collected include the cyclists' bio data, eye health practices such as use of protective eye shields and routine eye check. Examination of the anterior and posterior segments of the eyes was performed. Data was managed with SPSS 15 statistical package. Two hundred and six (206) eyes of 143 motorcyclists were included. The age range was 20-60 years, Mean 36.8 SD ±9.9. Ninety-five (66.4%) had been riding motorcycle for over 1year.Fifty-eight (40.6%) of them had some form of training on riding motorcycle before they began the trade. None of the cyclists made use of crash helmets or reflective jackets, 94 (65.7%) used eye protective shields, 37(25.9%)had eye problems, 19(13.3%) had eye check previously; 24.5% had visual acuity worse than 6/9 from uncorrected refractive errors. Glaucoma was confirmed in 10(3.5%) eyes. Use of eye Protective devices was common among the motorcyclists, less than a quarter of them had eye check before becoming a commercial motorcyclist, uncorrected refractive error was found in about a quarter of the motorcyclist, undiagnosed glaucoma found among them is similar to what exists in the general Nigerian population.Eye health promotion as part of other safety measures including having an eye check at licensing and renewal for motorcyclist is advocated in order to ensure safety of all road users.

Keywords-Commercial Motorcyclist, Eye health, Safety, Road