Abstract

Purpose: The aim of the study was to determine the pattern of ocular conditions among patients who attended the Salvation Army Eye Clinic at Wiamoase in the Ashanti Region of Ghana in 2016.

Method: A retrospective study of all patients attending the Salvation Army eye clinic at Wiamoase in 2016 was done.

Results: A total of 1000 folders were used in the study. There were 382 males (38.20%) and 618 females (61.80%) with a male to female ratio of 1:1.6. The mean age was 45.99 years (SD= ± 27.69). The commonest eye disorder encountered was conjunctivitis (39.70%). This was followed by cataract (24.40%), glaucoma (9.70%) and refractive errors (8.90%). 96.72% of cases of cataract and 85.57% of cases of glaucoma occurred in those above 40 years. Of those with refractive error, there were 40.45% with myopia, 34.83% with astigmatism and 24.72% with hyperopia. Conjunctivitis and cataract were significantly higher in females with p values of 0.008 and 0.000 respectively using the chi square test. However, there was no significant difference in the prevalence of glaucoma and refractive errors between males and females with p values of 0.189 and 0.255 respectively. Presbyopia was significantly higher in males with p values of 0.017.

Conclusion: Conjunctivitis, cataract, glaucoma and refractive errors were the major ocular conditions seen in this study. Efforts aimed at reducing ocular morbidity should target these conditions.

Keywords: Conjunctivitis; Cataract; Refractive error; Myopia; Hyperopia; Astigmatism; Presbyopia; Ocular condition; Pattern