Causes of childhood blindness: Results from Sebeta School for the Blind, Oromia Region, Ethiopia

Abstract

Background: Childhood blindness is a widespread problem in developing countries such as Ethiopia, so it’s crucial to identify region-specific causes to combat visual impairment.
Objective: To determine the causes of blindness in school children attending the Sebeta School for the Blind in the Oromia region.
Design: Cross-sectional descriptive study.
Subjects: All children attending the school during the study period were included, and those willing to participate were the study subjects.
Methods: The study involved all school children who volunteered, with some excluded: those who declined to participate, were 18 years or older, absent, or uncommunicative. The researchers collected data through a questionnaire based on the WHO/PBL format for children with blindness and low vision, modified as appropriate, and eye exams administered by the principal investigator and an ophthalmic nurse. Key informants (e.g., teachers) were also interviewed. They also used secondary data from students’ files to supplement and verify primary data. The data quality was ensured, and it was analyzed using SPSS version 23. Descriptive analysis was used to determine variable means, frequencies, and proportions.
Results: One hundred and fifty five students aged 7-17 years were examined. Childhood blindness affected 148 of them (95.5%). The most common anatomical cause of blindness was the whole globe (37.8%). The cause of blindness was unknown in over two-thirds of cases, with abnormalities since birth and cataracts responsible for 14.9% and 13.5%, respectively. Childhood factors accounted for most of the known causes of SVI/BL (15.5%), with trauma (7.4%) being the most common. Forty-two percent of the causes were avoidable, 14.2% preventable, and 27.7% treatable.
Conclusion: Trauma, a preventable cause, is recognized as a cause of avoidable blindness in these children.
Cataract and glaucoma, treatable causes of childhood blindness, have become major causes in blind school children in Central Ethiopia, displacing corneal blindness.
Recommendations: Policymakers should consider these findings when designing health service frameworks.
Primary health workers should receive training to refer children early for treatable childhood blindness causes.
Increasing the number of specialist paediatric ophthalmic services is crucial for cataract and glaucoma treatment.
Preventing trauma involves strict adult supervision and creating a safe domestic environment for children.