Research
Utilization of Eye Care Services among Those with Unilateral Visual Impairment in Rural South India: Andhra Pradesh Eye Disease Study (APEDS)
The purpose of this study was to report on the utilization of eye care services and its associated factors among those with unilateral visual impairment (VI) in a rural South Indian population.
This was a population-based cross sectional study conducted among 4456 participants.
Of the 489 (11%; 95% CI: 10.1-11.9) people with unilateral VI, 399 (81.6%) participants reported noticing a change in their vision over the last five years but only 136 (34.1%) participants had sought eye care consultation.
Participants with any education (OR: 1.9; 95% CI: 1.1-3.2), had blindness (OR: 2.7; 95% CI: 1.4- 5.2), and cataract (OR: 2.1; 95% CI: 1.0-4.3) as a cause of unilateral VI were more like to seek eye care consultations.
The most commonly reported reasons for not seeking eye care services were “do not have money for eye checkup” in 30.7% of the participants followed by “do not have a serious problem” (30.0%).
Although most people of rural population in India noticed a change in their vision, they did not seek eye care due to financial and person-related reasons.