Factors Associated With Conjunctival Bacterial Culture Positivity In Pre-Operative Cataract Patients

The study aim to determine the risk factors associated with conjunctival culture positivity in patients scheduled for cataract surgery in OAUTHC Ile-Ife. Eighty four consecutive consenting patients scheduled for cataract surgery were recruited into the study. The patients had a structured questionnaire administered, visual acuity assessment, pen torch examination as well as slit lamp bio-microscopy  examination. Conjunctival swab was obtained from the inferior conjunctival fornix of the eye scheduled for surgery using a sterile swab stick. The same was transported in a transport medium to the laboratory where microscopy culture and sensitivity was conducted. A total of 84 patients were recruited into this study, 40 (47.6%) were males and 44(52.4%) were females with a male: female ratio of 1:1 Age ranged postfrom 10 to 88 years with mean age of 57.9 ± 17.1 years. Majority 53(63.1%) had formal education in almost equal proportion by sex. 36 eyes (42.9%) had  positive conjunctival bacterial culture. Coagulase negative staphylococcus (CNS) was the most frequently isolated organism (50.0%). The associated risk factors with conjunctival culture positivity in patients scheduled for cataract surgery were: age 50 years and above (p value=0.004, risk ratio 1.4), male gender (p value=0.032, risk ratio 1.6) and low literacy level (p value=0.031, risk ratio 1.8). It was recommended that elderly, male and illiterate patients undergoing cataract surgery would benefit from extra attention and health education on ocular hygiene by ophthalmologists and other health workers in order to avoid post-operative ocular infections and endophthalmitisKeywords: Bacteria, Cataract, Culture, Pre-operative, bilateral operable cataract. Risk factorsThe Tropical Journal of Health Sciences Vol 19 No 1 (January

Awareness and utilization of protective eye device among welders in a southwestern Nigeria community

Objective: To determine the level of awareness and practice of use of  protective eye devices among welders in Ile-Ife.Methods: This is a cross-sectional descriptive study of 405 consenting  welders. A pretested proforma was utilized to obtain information on  sociodemographic characteristics, as well as awareness and use of  protective eye device.Results: The age of the respondents ranged from 16 to 80 years. The  mean age was 39 ± 13 years. A large proportion (315, 78%) of the welders was aged between 21 and 50 years. The youngest group aged ≤20 years accounted for 15 (4%) of all welders, while the oldest group aged >60 years accounted for 21 (5.2%). 402 were males (99.3%) and three were females (0.7%). Three hundred thirty-six (83%) of the welders had  practiced for 6 years and above. There was a high level of awareness of protective eye devices among the welders (367, 90.6%), being higher  among arc welders compared with gas welders (P<0.001). Less than half (186, 45.9%) of the welders possessed protective eye devices. Of these, only 39 (9.6%) made use of the devices always. Some of the reasons for not using the protective eye devices include discomfort and poor visibility (56, 13.6%) and inadequate appreciation of the necessity to wear it (49, 12.1%).Conclusion: The findings of this study suggest that a significant proportion of welders in Ile-Ife were not utilizing protective eye device. Health  education and awareness campaigns about the importance and benefits of utilizing protective eye devices are recommended

Prevalence of Eye Disease among Inmates of Ilesa Prison, Southwest Nigeria

Introduction: In Nigeria, like many other developing countries where prisoners have restricted access to health care including eye health care, severe untreated eye disorders are common causes of ocular morbidity and blindness. This study was carried out to determine the prevalence and pattern of eye disease among prisoners in Ilesa Prison, Osun state. Methods: A cross-sectional survey of ocular disorders among all the prisoners in Ilesa prison was conducted between October 2008 and March 2009. An interviewer – administered questionnaire was designed for the study. Ocular examination of each of the prisoners was carried out by an Ophthalmologist. This consisted of pen torch examination, direct ophthalmoscopy, intraocular pressure measurements, refraction, and visual field examination by confrontational methods. Result: Overall, a total of 515 prisoners were examined consisting of 492 (95.5%) males and 23 (4.5%) females. The male to female ratio was 21:1. This is statistically significant (p

Demographic Characteristics of Normal Tension Glaucoma Seen in a Suburban Tertiary Hospital

Introduction: Normal Tension Glaucoma (NTG) is a form of glaucoma in which there are distinct demographic characteristics and associated factors to its development. Identifying these characteristics helps early diagnosis and prevention of blindness. Aim of the study is to identify the various demographic characteristics and associated factors with the diagnosis of NTG in patients presenting to the glaucoma clinic of a tertiary hospital. Methods: All consecutive newly diagnosed glaucoma patients attending the eye clinic of EKSUTH, Ado Ekiti, from January 2012 to December 2014 were selected for the study. They all had thorough ocular and systemic examination. The patients with diagnosis of normal tension glaucoma had a protocol prepared for the study administered on them. Demographic data, family history of glaucoma, history of migraine, hypertension, and use of antihypertensive drugs at night were obtained from them. Data were analysed using SPSS version 18 and presented as tables, and figures, in frequencies, and percentage. Result: A total of 1265 patients were newly diagnosed to have glaucoma, of these, 864(68.3%) were POAG, 336(26.6%) were secondary glaucomas, 48(3.8%) normal tension glaucoma, 12(0.9%) angle closure glaucoma and 5(0.4%) were developmental glaucoma. Among the NTG patients, 30(62.5%) were females and 18(37.5%) males, (M:F =1.7:1) Age range was between 30years to 68years, median age of 59.3years. The identifiable associated factors in NTG patients include; family history of glaucoma 33(68.8%), hypertension and use of antihypertensive at night before sleep 24(50%), history suggestive of sleep apnea 6(12.5%), migraine headaches 10(20.8%) and thyroid disease 2(4.2%). No statistically significant association of these factors with severity of visual field defect in the subjects studied. Conclusion: This study suggests that age and positive family history of glaucoma are important demographic characteristics for consideration in diagnosis of NT