Abstract
Background: Rural areas are away from medical facilities & these areas catters more than 3/4th of Indian populations. Thus, eye care services need to be planned & executed in these areas.
 Aim: To determine the prevalence of other ocular and systemic co-morbidities among the camp selected cataract patients in rural areas.
 Methodology: The present observational study was conducted at postgraduate department of Ophthalmology of GMC Jammu & involved patients from various eye camps selected for ECCE (SICS with PC-IOL implantation surgery). Total of 84 patients were participated in the study. Detailed history was taken from the patient & relevant ocular & systemic examination was done.Routine investigations were also done.
 Results: The most frequently occuring systemic co-morbidities was hypertension i.e.36.9% followed by back pain in 32.1% in the present study. The ocular co-morbities other than cataract were diabetic retinopathy in 4.8%, glaucoma in 3.6% etc. Among other ocular co morbidity, optic atrophy, amblyopia, chorioretinal atrophy, macular scar etc were noted.
 Conclusion: From present study it has been concluded that large number of patients who came to seek ocular treatment in eye camps has systemic co morbidities also. Thus, other specialities should also be part of team of eye camp so that along with eye other comorbidities should also be treated.
 Key words: Cataract, Ocular co-morbidities, Systemic co-morbidities.
Highlights
The most commonly treatable cause of blindness is cataract.There are wide range of strategies and approaches aimed at providing services to individuals with minimal or no access to the clinic by means of outreach program, these programs primarily targeted at poor, illiterate or ignorant rural population
The present observational study was conducted at postgraduate department of Ophthalmology of GMC Jammu & involved patients from various eye camps selected for ECCE (SICS with PC-IOL implantation surgery)
The most frequently occuring systemic co-morbidities was hypertension i.e.36.9% followed by back pain in 32.1% in the present study
Summary
The most commonly treatable cause of blindness is cataract.There are wide range of strategies and approaches aimed at providing services to individuals with minimal or no access to the clinic by means of outreach program, these programs primarily targeted at poor, illiterate or ignorant rural population. Population need to be recognized which does not seek medical aid due to various reasons.[1] Unrelated to a patient’s principal diagnosis, co-morbidity is the total burden of illnesses.[2] outreach camps play a significant role especially in a country like India, which is dominated by ignorance about health problems.[3] to reach the unreached targets, periodic organization of well managed camps in rural areas are needed This present study is important to find the burden of systemic comorbidities in patients having cataract attending eye camps in rural area.
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