Journal of AdvancedMedical and Dental Sciences Research

Background: Visual impairment has significant effects on life quality and leads to serious social and economic implications for family and society. It is also a challenging issue for employment and recruitment in many countries. Aim of study: The assessment of the etiologies of Visual handicap amid patients reporting to Outpatient Department of medical college in Mumbai. Materials and methods: The study was conducted in the Department of Ophthalmology, MGM Hospital and College, Kamothe, Mumbai. We retrospectively analyzed the patients that obtained visual disability certificates during 1st January 2016 to 31st December 2016 from the Department of Opthalmology. The records of the patients, who were legally blind with best corrected visual acuity of 3/60 (10/200) in a better eye were recognized and included in the study for analysis. Results: A total of 158 patients comprised the study group. The age of the patients ranged from 5-80 years with mean age to be 41.68 + 23.32 years. 96 were males and 62 were females. The majority of patients belonged to the age group >64 years in both the genders. The retinitis pigmentosa was the leading cause of blindness in our study group (n=30), followed by corneal scar (n=26) and congenital malformations (n=25). Conclusion: The most common etiology for visual acuity in MGM Hospital, Kamothe, Mumbai during the time period of the study was Retinitis pigmentosa followed by corneal scar. This study provides measures likely to be taken to prevent visual handicap in this area.
Keywords: Cornea, Blindness, Glaucoma, Visual acuity.

Corresponding author: Dr. Nitesh Bhalla, PG Resident, Department of Ophthalmology, MGM Hospital and College, Kamothe, Mumbai

This article may be cited as: Deshpande S, Bhalla N, Ramakrishan R. Assessment of the Etiologies of Visual handicap amid patients reporting to Outpatient Department of Medical College in Mumbai: A Retrospective Study. J Adv Med Dent Scie Res 2017;5(11):72-75.