Knowledge and Awareness of Children Eye Care Among Parents In Malaysia

Abstract

Introduction: Children rarely complain about their vision, therefore rely on parents’ knowledge and awareness for early detection and management of their ocular problems. Parents’ knowledge and awareness may influence their eye-care seeking behaviour, which in turn helps to reduce the prevalence of childhood eye problems. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate knowledge and awareness about childhood eye problems and eye care seeking behaviour among parents in Malaysia. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on parents with either typically developing (TD group) or special needs children (SN group) in Malaysia. Data were collected using a self-administered, validated bilingual questionnaire using Google Form distributed through social medias and associations via purposive sampling. Results: A total of 173 respondents (74 in SN group; 99 in TD group) aged between 20 to 50 years old participated in the study. Participants had the highest and the least knowledge about refractive error and strabismus respectively with social medias been the main source of information. Overall knowledge and attitude scores were significantly higher in SN group compared to TD group (p < 0.05). Level of awareness was high for common symptoms and eye problems with no group differences observed. Conclusion: Misconception and low awareness are still an issue for less common eye conditions. The use of social medias in educating the public about these is recommended as this is the most preferred source of information. This study provides useful insight about parents in Malaysia with regards to children eye care including recommendations for future preventive measures.