Research
Refractive Error in School Children in Agona Swedru, Ghana
The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence and distribution of refractive error among schoolchildren in the Agona Swedru municipality of Central Region of Ghana.
This was a cross sectional school based study conducted with 637 randomly selected schoolchildren aged 11-18 years.
The prevalence of low vision (VA = 6/18 or worse in the better eye) was 2.5%.
Seventy-nine (85.9%) of those who failed the vision test and had refraction were found to have refractive errors representing the prevalence of 13.3%.
Out of the children with refractive errors, 30 (38.0%) had hyperopia, 10 (12.6%) had myopia while 39 (49.4%) had astigmatism.
The prevalence of hyperopia, myopia and astigmatism among the children was 5.0%, 1.7% and 6.6% respectively.
Uncorrected refractive error is a common cause of visual impairment among schoolchildren in the municipality suggesting the need for improved eye care services.