Blepharoptosis in Ibadan, Nigeria.

Abstract

To look into the cases of blepharoptosis in our environment as well as find out the causes and effects of the ptosis. Prospective clinic study and prospective cluster sampling method of school children. University College Hospital, Ibadan and 3 schools in Ibadan, Nigeria. Over a 5 year period, all patients who presented with blepharoptosis at the University College Hospital were recruited for the study. During the same period, a school survey was also done to find out the prevalence of blepharoptosis among school children. Twenty five cases of blepharoptosis were found during the 5 year period. Fifty two percent of the patients were found to be less than 16 years of age while only 8% were over 50 years of age. There was a 1:1 male to female ratio with majority of them (68%) having only one eye affected. The most common cause of blepharoptosis was found to be congenital, accounting for 56% of the patients. The prevalence in the school survey was found to be 1.2% higher than the incidence of 0.5% found in the eye clinic. Blepharoptosis is not an uncommon ocular problem. A detailed assessment of the cause, amount of ptosis and levator functions helps to determine the most appropriate surgical technique which would give the best functional and cosmetic result.