Major Causes of Low Vision and Blindness in Southeast Nigeria.

People with low vision find it difficult to perform their visual tasks and would require low vision aids to carry out these tasks effectively. In developing countries and especially the rural areas, lack of adequate health care results in preventable eye problems that lead to low vision and blindness.This study was carried out to determine the major causes of low vision among people living in rural communities of Southeast Nigeria. A total of 446 subjects (186 males and 260 females) with a mean age of 58.70±15.57were examined for ocular problems. Tests conducted include visual acuity, ophthalmoscopy, retinoscopy, subjective refraction, external examination with pen light and visual field tests.The major causes of low vision and blindness was cataract (6.95%), glaucoma (4.26%), macular degeneration (1.56%), cornea opacity (1.35%), diabetic retinopathy (1.12%), uveitis (0.90%), retinal detachment (0.90%), retinitis pigmentosa (0.67%), pterygium (0.45%) and hypertensive retinopathy (0.45%). Most of these ocular problems causing low vision and blindness are preventable but are present due to unavailability of adequate eye care in the rural areas and lack of proper health education. The use of optical and non-optical low vision devices will help in the rehabilitation of these patients to enable them perform their visual tasks.