Prevalence Of Lazy Eyes Among Primary School Students In Rural Areas Of Baghdad City

Abstract

To measure the prevalence of lazy eyes in Baghdad's rural primary school students. The sample consists of 311 students from 18 government-run primary schools; each student had their eyes examined in first- through sixth-grade primary classes, and children between the ages of 6 and 14 were included in the study to determine the presence of the lazy eye. Visual acuity (VA) was assessed using Snellen's chart, and a sample of students underwent the test. Lazy eye was then identified using the following criteria: 1) Either the two eyes' Snellen charts show a two-line difference or more, or the visual acuity is 6/12 or worse. 2) The continued presence of a visual acuity issue following refractive error correction. The results indicate that 311 students in total have lazy eyes, with a prevalence of 3.5% among students in this age group (9 to 12 years), which includes 40% males and 60% females. The refractive error in the lazy eye causes hyperopia in more than half of students (65%). Most students (95%) aren't aware that they have lazy eyes. On the count finger test for visual acuity, the results were (39%) for the left eye and (38%) for the right eye. A significant number of students (88%) did not wear glasses, and (93%) reported having blurry vision. Poor academic performance was ranked at 75%, and anisometropia was at 36%. More than half of the students (57%) who were not seen by the medical staff arrived at school from the neighborhood primary care center. As a conclusion, in the rural Alker Kh district of Baghdad, 3.5% of students in government primary schools had lazy eyes.