Vision health disparities in blindness and visual impairment in Nigeria: A review of the Nigerian National Blindness and Visual Impairment Survey

Purpose: Blindness and visual impairment have become public health problems with prevalence increasing year after year. Nigeria, the most populated country in Africa, is also very diverse in terms of geographical location, ethnicity and culture. This study looks at and considers the vision health disparities in blindness and visual impairment in Nigeria using socio-demographic factors such as gender, geopolitical zones, place of residence and literacy. Methods: A comprehensive literature search was conducted on PubMed and Google Scholar databases from May 2014 to May 2015. The search included articles from 2001 to May 2015 as well as a review of the Nigerian National Blindness and Visual Impairment Survey. Results: The male dominance culture and lower literacy levels among women in Nigeria have led to a higher prevalence of blindness and visual impairment among women compared to men. In Nigeria, eye diseases that lead to blindness and visual impairment occur more in certain geopolitical zones and ecological regions than others. More Nigerians live in remote rural areas, with little or no access to health care, rather than in urban areas where there are more eye care practitioners and better facilities for care. Conclusion: Differences in gender, geopolitical zones, place of residence and literacy are responsible for existing vision health disparities in blindness and visual impairment in Nigeria

Prevalence and clinical profile of glaucoma patients in rural Nigeria : a hospital based study

Purpose To determine the prevalence and clinical presentation of participants with glaucoma attending a public eye care facility in Nigeria. Method Hospital based retrospective study of glaucoma participants aged 50 years and above seen over a 5-year period. Descriptive statistics summarized the demographic, clinical characteristics and treatment of the participants and determined the association of variables with gender and age. Prevalence of the glaucoma by type, and their 95% confidence intervals (CI) were also calculated. Result Of the 5482 case files that were reviewed, 995 (18.15%, 95% Cl 17.15–19.19%) had glaucoma particularly primary open angle glaucoma (11.55%, 95%CI 10.73–12.42%) and were mostly females (564, 56.7%) aged 69 ± 12 years (range, 50–103 years). In contrast to other glaucoma types, the prevalence of primary angle closure glaucoma (3.68, 95%CI 3.22–4.22) increased by 15% over 5 years. The mean intraocular pressure ranged from 15–50 mmHg but higher in females than males (27.8 ± 6.1mmHg versus 26.6 ± 6.0 mmHg, P [removed]0.05). On presentation, the glaucoma hemi field test (GHFT) was outside the normal limits in 45.5% and 54.5% of males and females, respectively. The type of visual field defect was associated with glaucoma type (P = 0.047). Arcuate scotoma was most common (35.5%) across glaucoma types, paracentral scotoma more common in Secondary glaucoma while Seidel scotoma was highest in NTG (19.3%). Beta-blocker was the mainstay of management (42.2%) but more likely to be prescribed to males while more females received carbonic anhydrase inhibitors. Conclusions The high prevalence of glaucoma in older people remains a public health problem in Nigeria. The fact that about half of the participants presented with visual field defect suggests there is a need for public health messages to emphasize on early glaucoma screening, detection and management