SIGNIFICANCEInappropriate ophthalmic self-medication continues to plague Sub-Saharan Africa because of lack of public health education and inaccessibility to eye care services. This case series describes three cases of blindness (two monocular, one binocular) in Ghana, because of self-treatment of ocular conditions using improper drugs or homemade herbal mixtures. The article highlights the consequences of misinterpretation of symptoms and use of traditional home remedies, leading to delayed professional eye care and avoidable blindness.PURPOSEThis case series aims to report three separate cases of avoidable blindness after inappropriate ophthalmic self-medication to draw attention to the need for intense public health education in Ghana.CASE REPORTSThree men aged 25, 79, and 35 years, respectively, reported severe reduction in visual acuity in one eye for two cases and both eyes for one case. All patients reported ophthalmic self-medication either with an inappropriate drug bought from the drug store or a homemade herbal mixture made from leaves assumed to treat eye infections. Professional care did not yield any improvement in visual acuity because their corneas were already decompensated at the onset of management. The eye of one patient had to be enucleated.CONCLUSIONSThese cases highlight the importance of eye health promotion and education. It is recommended that intense sensitization is carried out at all levels.
Purpose: To investigate the effect of lters and illumination on contrast sensitivity in persons with cataract, pseudophakia, maculopathy and glaucoma to provide a guide for eye care providers in low vision rehabilitation.Materials and methods: A within-subjects experimental design with a counter-balanced presentation technique was employed in this study. The contrast sensitivity of eyes with cataract, pseudophakia, maculopathy and glaucoma were measured with lters (no lter, yellow, pink and orange) combined with increasing illumination levels (100lux, 300lux, 700lux and 1000lux) using the SpotChecks TM contrast sensitivity chart. The data was analyzed using descriptive statistics and two-way repeated measures ANOVA.Results: The yellow lter in combination with 100lux signi cantly (p<0.01) improved contrast sensitivity by approximately 6.5% among eyes with cataract. There was also a signi cant interaction between illumination and lters, with Huynh-Feldt correction, F (7.20, 230.23) = 2.06, p=0.04. Eyes with pseudophakia performed best at 1000lux with or without lters. In eyes with maculopathy, the yellow lter combined with 300lux gave the best improvement in CS from 1.33-1.45logCS (p=0.01). Illumination of 1000lux without a lter improved CS best in eyes with Glaucoma. Conclusion:The effect of lters and illumination on contrast sensitivity is dependent on the cause of contrast sensitivity loss. Eye care professionals must consider the underlying cause of visual impairment if patient speci c care is to be rendered.
Purpose: To investigate the effect of filters and illumination on contrast sensitivity in persons with cataract, pseudophakia, maculopathy and glaucoma to provide a guide for eye care providers in low vision rehabilitation.Materials and methods: A within-subjects experimental design with a counter-balanced presentation technique was employed in this study. The contrast sensitivity of eyes with cataract, pseudophakia, maculopathy and glaucoma were measured with filters (no filter, yellow, pink and orange) combined with increasing illumination levels (100lux, 300lux, 700lux and 1000lux) using the SpotChecksTM contrast sensitivity chart. The data was analyzed using descriptive statistics and two-way repeated measures ANOVA.Results: The yellow filter in combination with 100lux significantly (p<0.01) improved contrast sensitivity by approximately 6.5% among eyes with cataract. There was also a significant interaction between illumination and filters, with Huynh-Feldt correction, F (7.20, 230.23) = 2.06, p=0.04. Eyes with pseudophakia performed best at 1000lux with or without filters. In eyes with maculopathy, the yellow filter combined with 300lux gave the best improvement in CS from 1.33-1.45logCS (p=0.01). Illumination of 1000lux without a filter improved CS best in eyes with Glaucoma.Conclusion: The effect of filters and illumination on contrast sensitivity is dependent on the cause of contrast sensitivity loss. Eye care professionals must consider the underlying cause of visual impairment if patient specific care is to be rendered.
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