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Tambuzai Liyo,1 Grace Obumneke Ogbonna,1 Thokozani Mzumara,1,2 Ngozika Esther Ezinne3 1Department of Optometry, Mzuzu University, Mzuzu, Malawi; 2Department of Ophthalmology, Mzimba North District Hospital, Mzimba, Malawi; 3Optometry Unit, Department of Clinical Surgical Sciences, University of the West Indies, Saint Augustine Campus, Saint Augustine, Trinidad and TobagoCorrespondence: Grace Obumneke Ogbonna, Department of Optometry, Mzuzu University, P/Bag 201, Mzuzu, Malawi, Email Ogbonnagrace19@gmail.comPurpose: To assess the prevalence of ocular morbidities and associated factors among hearing-impaired (HI) students at the Embangweni School for the Deaf in Mzimba, Malawi.Methods: This was an institutional cross-sectional study of HI students at Embangweni School for the Deaf. A series of optometric and audiometric tests was performed, and the results were exported to the Statistical Package for Social Science for statistical analysis (SPSS) version 25. Pearson’s chi-square test was used to assess correlations and associations between variables. A P-value less significance was set at p < 0.05.Results: A total of 147 children comprising of 76 (51.7%) males and 71 (48.3%) females participated in this study. The prevalence of ocular conditions and visual impairment was 39 (26.5%) and 2 (1.4%), respectively. The Prevalence of eye disease was significantly associated with male sex (p=0.02) and type of HI (p=0.031). Allergic conjunctivitis 36 (24.5%) was the most common ocular condition, followed by refractive error 28 (19%).Conclusion: The prevalence of ocular conditions among HI students was significant and associated with sex. Regular school vision screening of students with HI is highly advised to reduce the burden of visual impairment.Plain Language Summary: Hearing impairment places a great burden on the sufferers. Ocular conditions among this population further disadvantages them in terms of education and personal development. The current study evaluated the prevalence of ocular conditions among school children at the Embangweni School of the Deaf. We observed that there is high prevalence of eye conditions among this population which was more prevalent among the males. Conjunctivitis was the most prevalent ocular condition. There is a great need for regular vision screening for this population for early detection and management of ocular conditions among them.Keywords: child health, hearing impairment, ocular morbidity, special education, vision screening, visual impairment |
