Department of Optometry, Mzuzu University, Private Bag 201, Mzuzu, Malawi.
Department of Ophthalmology, Mzimba North District Hospital, Mzuzu, Malawi.
Sci Rep. 2024 Mar 20;14(1):6725. doi: 10.1038/s41598-024-55538-z.
Globally, there has been a dramatic increase in the geriatric population. Sadly, this populace is highly prone to develop various ocular morbidities putting pressure on the strained eye care delivery system especially in low-income countries. Hence, the aim of this study was to determine the distribution of ocular morbidities among elderly. The study was a retrospective cross-sectional study conducted at Mzuzu Central Hospital in Malawi. We retrieved data from the hospital's Ophthalmology out-patient registry from January 2021 to December 2021. We recruited all 970 elderly patients who visited the clinic during the period of study. Data entry and analysis was done employing SPSS (v.26). More males than females had ocular morbidities. Cataract 400 (41.2%) was the most prevalent ocular morbidity followed by glaucoma 189 (19.5%), pinguecula 48 (4.9%) and allergic conjunctivitis 43 (4.4%). Anterior segment eye diseases were common 714 (73.6%). The prevalence of cataract, glaucoma, refractive error and allergic conjunctivitis was significantly associated with sex (p < 0.05). Age association was found with the prevalence of cataract, glaucoma, pinguecula, allergic conjunctivitis and corneal scar (p < 0.05). The pattern of eye diseases is endemic to the country. More resources should be targeting cataract and glaucoma among the age group.
全球老年人口数量急剧增加。不幸的是，这一人群极易患上各种眼部疾病，给本已紧张的眼部保健服务系统带来压力，尤其是在低收入国家。因此，本研究旨在确定老年人眼部疾病的分布情况。本研究是在马拉维姆祖中央医院进行的回顾性横断面研究。我们从医院 2021 年 1 月至 2021 年 12 月的眼科门诊登记处检索数据。在此期间，我们招募了所有 970 名到诊所就诊的老年人。数据录入和分析使用 SPSS（v.26）进行。患有眼部疾病的男性多于女性。白内障 400 例（41.2%）是最常见的眼部疾病，其次是青光眼 189 例（19.5%）、翼状胬肉 48 例（4.9%）和过敏性结膜炎 43 例（4.4%）。眼前节眼部疾病常见 714 例（73.6%）。白内障、青光眼、屈光不正和过敏性结膜炎的患病率与性别显著相关（p<0.05）。年龄与白内障、青光眼、翼状胬肉、过敏性结膜炎和角膜瘢痕的患病率相关（p<0.05）。眼部疾病的模式在该国普遍存在。应该针对该年龄段的白内障和青光眼投入更多资源。
