Astigmatism and its Associated Factors in Pediatric Population, Nepal

Abstract

Introduction: Astigmatism is a common vision disorder that leads to blurred vision due to the inability of the ocular system to form a sharply focused image on the retina. A child with uncorrected astigmatism experiences blur on a continuous basis and also child has a clear retinal image when looking at a near environment. Objective: The objective of this study was to access the prevalence and risk factors associated with Astigmatism in pediatric population. Method: This was a hospital based cross sectional study conducted among 2 to 14 years children with astigmatism of ≥ 1.0 D in either eye. Study conducted from 1st September 2022 to 28th February 2023. Data was entered in Ms-Excel and further analyzed in SPSS Version 12.0. Result: Prevalence of astigmatism was found to be 38.80%. Prevalence in Male was found to be higher 65.20% than in female. Age was found to be statistically significant p = (0.003) with astigmatism. Conclusion: Astigmatism is a common vision disorder that leads to blurred vision due to the inability of the ocular system to form a sharply focused image on the retina. Concerned stakeholder need to screen the problem to minimize preventable blindness in children.