Demographic profile of newly detected refractive errors among schoolgoing children in Thrissur district of Kerala

Abstract

Aim: This study aims to analyze the demographic profile of newly detected refractive errors among schoolgoing children in Thrissur district of Kerala. Materials and Methods: In this population-based cross-sectional study, 91,628 schoolgoing children between 6 and 17 years of age, from Thrissur district of Kerala were evaluated through school screening programs conducted at the respective schools. Demographic and clinical profiles of refractive errors among children with newly prescribed spectacles were analyzed. Statistical Analysis: Demographic data were represented as bar charts and pie diagrams. Subgroup analysis for type for the influence of age, sex, and rural–urban location on the pattern of refractive error was analyzed using odds ratio. Results: Out of the total 91,628 schoolgoing children, 1079 (1.18%) were newly prescribed with spectacles. Out of these, 549 (50.80%) were boys and 530 (49.20%) were girls. Myopic astigmatism was the most common refractive error (68.30%) in all the age groups taken together and individually. Simple myopia was seen in 13.81%, hypermetropic astigmatism in 13.07%, mixed astigmatism in 3.89%, and simple hypermetropia in 1.20% newly prescribed cases. In the 10–12 year age group, there was a significantly higher chance of occurrence of refractive errors of all types among the rural children in comparison to their urban counterparts. In the 6–9 years' age group, there was a significantly higher chance of occurrence of hypermetropia, hypermetropic astigmatism, and mixed astigmatism among the rural children when compared to the urban children. Conclusion: Prevalence of spectacle use was less than the need for spectacle correction among schoolgoing children in Thrissur district of Kerala. As the prevalence of uncorrected/undercorrected refractive errors was more among the rural upper primary and lower primary school children, targeted strategies to address this deficit in service delivery need to be formulated.