Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2024 May 30;14(5):e083199.
doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2023-083199.

Cross-sectional study of prevalence, causes and trends in visual impairment in Nirmal District, Telangana, India: Nirmal Eye Evaluation for Trends study

Srinivas Marmamula  1   2   3   4 , Aritra Chinya  5 , Vijay Kumar Yelagondula  3 , Rajashekar Varada  5 , Rohit C Khanna  5   2   6 , Raja Narayanan  4   7
Affiliations

Cross-sectional study of prevalence, causes and trends in visual impairment in Nirmal District, Telangana, India: Nirmal Eye Evaluation for Trends study

Srinivas Marmamula et al. BMJ Open. .

Abstract

Objective: To determine the prevalence, causes and risk factors associated with visual impairment (VI) in the Nirmal district of Telangana, India, using extended Rapid Assessment of Visual Impairment (RAVI) methodology.

Design: Cross-sectional study.

Setting: Community setting.

Participants: Participants aged ≥16 years were enumerated from 90 randomly selected clusters and 4629/5400 (85.7%) participants were examined. Presenting visual acuity (VA) was assessed using a Snellen chart with E optotypes at a 6 m distance. Near vision was assessed binocularly using an N notation chart with tumbling E optotypes at a 40 cm distance. An anterior segment examination done followed by distance direct ophthalmoscopy at 50 cm. Non-mydriatic fundus images were obtained. VI was defined as presenting VA worse than 6/12 in the better eye. The prevalence of VI in the current study was compared with a RAVI study conducted in 2014 to assess the trends in VI among those aged ≥40 years.

Primary outcome: Prevalence, causes and risk factors for VI.

Results: Among those examined, 55% were women, 53% had at least school-level education, 2.3% self-reported diabetes and 8.7% self-reported hypertension. The prevalence of VI was 8.81% (95% CI 8.01% to 9.67%). Overall, uncorrected refractive errors (49.5%) were the leading cause of VI, followed by cataracts (40.2%) and posterior segment diseases (4.9%). Among those aged ≥40 years, the prevalence of VI declined by 19.3% compared with the 2014 baseline study (from 20.2% to 16.3%; p<0.01).

Conclusion: The extended RAVI study conducted in the Nirmal district showed a considerable decline in the prevalence of VI. Targeted interventions are needed to provide adequate eye care for the high-risk groups in this district.

Keywords: epidemiologic studies; observational study; public health.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Competing interests: None declared.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Causes of visual impairment across the age groups.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

References

    1. Bourne R, Steinmetz JD, Flaxman S, et al. . Trends in prevalence of blindness and distance and near vision impairment over 30 years: an analysis for the global burden of disease study. Lancet Global Health 2021;9:e130–43. 10.1016/S2214-109X(20)30425-3 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Steinmetz JD, Bourne RRA, Briant PS, et al. . Causes of blindness and vision impairment in 2020 and trends over 30 years, and prevalence of Avoidable blindness in relation to VISION 2020: the right to sight: an analysis for the global burden of disease study. Lancet Global Health 2021;9:e144–60. 10.1016/S2214-109X(20)30489-7 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Marmamula S, Keeffe JE, Rao GN. Rapid assessment methods in eye care: an overview. Indian J Ophthalmol 2012;60:416–22. 10.4103/0301-4738.100539 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. McCormick I, Mactaggart I, Resnikoff S, et al. . Eye health indicators for universal health coverage: results of a global expert Prioritisation process. Br J Ophthalmol 2022;106:893–901. 10.1136/bjophthalmol-2020-318481 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Mactaggart I, Limburg H, Bastawrous A, et al. . Rapid assessment of Avoidable blindness: looking back, looking forward. Br J Ophthalmol 2019;103:1549–52. 10.1136/bjophthalmol-2019-314015 - DOI - PMC - PubMed

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources