Visual handicap certificates: A tool to evaluate the causes for permanent visual impairment in Northern Maharashtra

Abstract

To analyse the causes of visual impairment amongst the patients coming for the visual handicap certificate and its application in eye health planning to prevent the blindness. A retrospective data analysis of medical records of 553 people who had applied for the visual handicap certification. Examination was done by the ophthalmologists appointed for the handicap board. BCVA < 20/60 to 20/120 in better eye was included in visual impairment Cat I(40%)and BCVA20/200 or less is blindness category II to IV(75%to100%). Data was analysed using SSPE software and Chi square test for significance. The prevalence of male patients was significantly higher than that of females (p<0.05), majority of them belonged to age group of 16 year to 45 years of age, 332 (60.03%) individuals had mild visual Impairment(< 40%), in 59(10.66%) individuals moderate visual impairment (40%) was found; in162(29.29%) individuals had sever visual impairment to blindness, over all phthisis (p=0.0001)was the most common cause followed by corneal opacity(p=0.0249)and Amblyopia (p=0.03). Most of the causes are preventable and some of them are emerging as complications of cataract surgery, increased road traffic accidents and occupational hazards. Visual handicap registers are useful for the rehabilitation of visually impaired individuals and to assess the pattern or causes of blindness in particular area. The most common etiological factors causing visual impairment in our study are preventable so we propose the empowerment of the school health system and general health delivery system, early detection of amblyogenic factors and its timely treatment, applying strict safety precautions to factory workers who are prone to ocular injuries and increased safety for road traffic in Northern part of Maharashtra.