African Vision and Eye Health

Background: Visual impairment (VI) is caused by various conditions such as uncorrected refractive error (URE), cataracts, glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy (DR), trauma and HIV or AIDS complications.Aim: This study determines the prevalence and associated factors of VI among adults aged 35 years and older attending the Phelophepa Train in the Eastern Cape.Setting: Data were collected at the Phelophepa eye clinic using participants from the Eastern Cape province, South Africa.Methods: A quantitative and cross-sectional study was conducted using a systematic random sampling method to select a sample of record cards from 563 participants. Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) was used to perform bivariate analyses, linear regression analysis and confidence intervals (CI).Results: The mean age was 59.17 ± 12.95 years (range = 35–93 years). The prevalence of VI and blindness was 57.6% (95% CI: 53.0% – 61.0%), VI was 51% and blindness at 6.6%. The majority were females and resided in rural areas, with low socioeconomic status being a significant risk factor for VI (P 0.001). The primary causes of VI were URE (38%), cataracts (20%), glaucoma (2.3%), DR (1.6%) and corneal opacities (0.5%). The most prevalent chronic diseases were hypertension (HTN) (28.4%), followed by comorbidities of HTN and diabetes mellitus (DM) (17.94%), HIV/AIDS (7.82%) and DM (5.20%) (P = 0.01).Conclusion: Visual impairment and blindness among adults ≥ 35 years old were high, with primary causes including URE, cataracts, glaucoma, DR and corneal opacities.Contribution: Sustainable programmes should be established to provide optimal optical correction for UREs and cataract removal.

Sicelo M. Mafuleka

Thokozile I. Metsing

African vision and eye health

Prevalence and associated factors of visual impairment among adults attending Phelophepa Train, South Africa

南非Phelophepa列车就诊成人视力障碍的患病率及相关因素

Background: Research investigating the differences in visio-spatial skills (VSS) between athletes and non-athletes, as well as variations across sports, presents conflicting findings.Aim: The objective of this study was to determine if there exist significant differences in visio-spatial intelligence (VSI) skills between rugby players and netball players, and whether such disparities are present when comparing both groups to non-athletes.Setting: All participants, including the control group (non-athletes), rugby players and netball players, were recruited from the Zululand region of South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal province, specifically from all premier league rugby and netball teams in the area.Methods: Participants underwent an optometric assessment, followed by an evaluation of VSS using six established tests: The Hart Near Far Rock, saccadic eye movement, evasion, accumulator, flash memory and ball wall toss tests.Results: The results revealed that rugby players significantly outperformed netball players in speed of recognition, peripheral awareness and hand-eye coordination (P = 0.000). Moreover, both rugby players and netball players performed significantly better than non-athletes in five of the six tests (P = 0.000), with the exception being the visual memory test (P = 0.809).Conclusion: This discrepancy in performance suggests that certain VSS are superior in athletes compared to non-athletes, highlighting potential implications for theories of vision, test selection and the development of sport-specific VSS testing batteries. Furthermore, the use of a hand-eye coordination-specific VSS test battery effectively differentiated between different sports.Contribution: The identified pattern was not consistent across all VSS tests, indicating that further research should explore the training methods employed by both sports, as these factors may contribute to the observed differences.

Lourens Millard

Gerrit J. Breukelman

Nonkululeko Mathe

Comparing visio-spatial intelligence in amateur rugby and netball players using hand-eye coordination tests

使用手眼协调测试比较业余橄榄球和无挡板篮球运动员的视觉空间智力

Editorial Office

Acknowledgement to reviewers

审稿人致谢

Background: The provision of eye care services by trained and well-capacitated primary care providers in the rural community will contribute significantly to the reduction of avoidable blindness.Aim: This study aimed to investigate mid-level healthcare providers’ knowledge and skills capacity to provide primary eye care services.Setting: The study was conducted in four districts of southern Ethiopia.Methods: An institution-based descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among randomly selected mid-level healthcare providers from August to October 2023. A self-administered questionnaire was used to collect data. Data entry and analysis were performed using Epi info version 6 and SPSS version 28 software. Descriptive statistics and logistic regression models were used in the analysis.Results: A total of 103 mid-level healthcare providers were involved in the evaluation with a response rate of 99%. Of the study respondents, less than half (48.5%) were found to have intermediate-level ability to provide primary eye care services. Serving more patients per month (p 0.001), receiving additional training (p 0.005) and having a first degree (p 0.001) were found to have a statistically significant association with the ability to provide primary eye care services.Conclusion: Most primary eye care service providers had a significant knowledge and skill gap. Capacity-building training aimed at enhancing the ability of primary eye care service providers need the appropriate attention.Contribution: This study presents the ability of mid-level healthcare workers to provide primary eye care services to support the elimination of avoidable blindness, resulting in improved quality of life.

Temesgen W. Kentayiso

Naomi L. Nkoane

Kholofelo L. Matlhaba

Primary eye care service provision ability of mid-level healthcare providers in southern Ethiopia

埃塞俄比亚南部中级卫生保健提供者的初级眼科服务提供能力

Background: Over 50 million people are blind, and 135 million people suffer from severe visual impairments, with cataracts contributing to 51% of global blindness cases. Despite efforts to promote cataract surgery (CS), many patients remain hesitant, underscoring the importance of understanding their perspectives.Aim: This study aimed to explore and describe patients’ perceptions regarding reluctance to undergo CS to improve awareness and increase surgery uptake.Setting: The research was conducted in the Sedibeng District, Gauteng province, South Africa.Methods: A qualitative descriptive phenomenological design was employed to capture the lived experiences of patients through face-to-face, individual semi-structured interviews with 15 patients aged 38 – 72 years prior to their CS. Purposive sampling was used to select participants, and Colaizzi’s seven-step analysis was used for data analysis.Results: The findings highlight several barriers perceived by participants, including long waiting times; fear; lack of knowledge; limited financial, material and human resources; power outages; uncontrolled blood sugar levels; and coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic restrictions. Nevertheless, some view it positively as a means to avert blindness and enhance vision.Conclusion: To address the challenges, the study recommends boosting the number of eye health care professionals, prioritising budget allocation, addressing electricity interruptions and conducting community outreach educational programmes to improve access to CS in the district.Contribution: The insights gained from this study can help health care providers and policymakers optimise care and support for CS patients through policy formulation and education. Addressing these knowledge gaps will likely increase surgery uptake and improve patients’ quality of life.

Hluphekile M. Modise

Sheillah H. Mboweni

Patients’ perceptions on reluctance to undergo cataract surgery in Sedibeng district hospital, Gauteng province

患者对在豪登省塞迪本区医院不愿接受白内障手术的看法

ISSN	2410-1516, 2413-3183
h-index	12

涉及主题	医学验光服务生物眼科物理心理学光学外科神经科学计算机科学数学视力政治学内科学病理法学遗传学社会学化学精神科
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基本数据	创刊年份: 2015，原创研究文献占比: 0.00%，自引率:N.A.， Gold OA占比: 0.00%
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African Vision and Eye Health

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Prevalence and associated factors of visual impairment among adults attending Phelophepa Train, South Africa

Comparing visio-spatial intelligence in amateur rugby and netball players using hand-eye coordination tests

Acknowledgement to reviewers

Primary eye care service provision ability of mid-level healthcare providers in southern Ethiopia

Patients’ perceptions on reluctance to undergo cataract surgery in Sedibeng district hospital, Gauteng province

Prevalence and associated factors of visual impairment among adults attending Phelophepa Train, South Africa

Comparing visio-spatial intelligence in amateur rugby and netball players using hand-eye coordination tests

Acknowledgement to reviewers

Primary eye care service provision ability of mid-level healthcare providers in southern Ethiopia

Patients’ perceptions on reluctance to undergo cataract surgery in Sedibeng district hospital, Gauteng province