Clinico-epidemiological profile of congenital ocular anomalies in Western Odisha

Abstract

Congenital birth defects are major cause of poor health among infants affecting their survivability. Although such anomalies of the eyes are uncommon, the impact they have on the quality of life are more than significant. This study aimed to describe the clinical profile of congenital ocular anomalies with various epidemiological parameters in a tertiary health care center in western Orissa. The study screened 3674 patients, in the age group of 0 – 14 years, who were delivered or attended the out-patient Department V.S.S. Medical College, Burla, Odisha and included 151 eyes of 99 cases of various types of congenital anomalies. Detailed history and other necessary data were collected by trained ophthalmologists and descriptive analyses performed. The incidence of congenital ocular anomalies was found to be 2.69%. Nasolacrimal duct anomalies (47 eyes) were the most frequently occurring congenital ocular anomaly (31.1%); followed by congenital cataract (41 cases; 27.3%) and coloboma eye (18 cases; 11.9%).There was a slight male preponderance, constituting 56.57% of the total cases. Majority of the patients were less than 5 years old (68 %) and the incidence of congenital ocular anomalies to be highest (68.69%) in the age group of 0 – 5 years.