Visual deficits in Nepalese patients with oculocutaneous albinism
Background: Albinism poses a significant threat to visual functions and causes remarkable ocular morbidity often resulting in visual disabilities. The study aimed at describing the visual status in patients with diagnosed cases of complete oculocutaneous albinism (OCA) attending to a tertiary eye ho...
| Main Authors: | , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Elsevier
2016-04-01
|
| Series: | Journal of Optometry |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1888429615000035 |
| _version_ | 1828312577669595136 |
|---|---|
| author | Safal Khanal Amrit Pokharel Himal Kandel |
| author_facet | Safal Khanal Amrit Pokharel Himal Kandel |
| author_sort | Safal Khanal |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Background: Albinism poses a significant threat to visual functions and causes remarkable ocular morbidity often resulting in visual disabilities. The study aimed at describing the visual status in patients with diagnosed cases of complete oculocutaneous albinism (OCA) attending to a tertiary eye hospital in Nepal.
Methods: This was a cross-sectional descriptive hospital-based study of all diagnosed oculocutaneous albinotic cases (16 males and 9 females; mean age of 16 years) who visited the Department of Ophthalmology at the Institute of Medicine, for ocular consultation between September 1, 2011 and December 1, 2013.
Results: Twenty-five cases (50 eyes) with OCA were enrolled in the study. All the participants had maximally reduced visual acuity (mean: 1.24 ± 0.50 logMAR). Myopic astigmatism was the most common refractive error (n = 17; 34%). 58% of all participants had with-the-rule astigmatism.
Considering the spherical equivalent power, most of the eyes (n = 30; 60%) had myopia, with overall mean SE refractive error of −1.59 ± 5.39 D. Visual acuity improved significantly with refractive correction in place (paired sample t-test, p < 0.05). Horizontal pendular nystagmus was the most common nystagmus (n = 34 eyes; 68%). Alternating esotropia and alternating exotropia each were observed in 16% of participants who had strabismus (40% of all cases). The diaphanous iris, foveal hypoplasia and poliosis were the most consistent clinical features.
Conclusion: Patients with OCA present with a broad spectrum of visual deficits that impair the visual functions. Significant improvement in visual acuity following optical correction serves as an impetus to the reduction of visual disabilities in individuals with albinism. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-13T16:17:31Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-ce708c0b7a73443092d6932fb5445724 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1888-4296 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-13T16:17:31Z |
| publishDate | 2016-04-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Optometry |
| spelling | doaj.art-ce708c0b7a73443092d6932fb54457242022-12-22T02:40:01ZengElsevierJournal of Optometry1888-42962016-04-019210210910.1016/j.optom.2015.01.002Visual deficits in Nepalese patients with oculocutaneous albinismSafal Khanal0Amrit Pokharel1Himal Kandel2College of Optometry, Southwestern University, Cebu City, PhilippinesKathmandu Medical College Teaching Hospital, Kathmandu, NepalBrien Holden Vision Institute, Department of Optometry and Vision Sciences, MMUST, KenyaBackground: Albinism poses a significant threat to visual functions and causes remarkable ocular morbidity often resulting in visual disabilities. The study aimed at describing the visual status in patients with diagnosed cases of complete oculocutaneous albinism (OCA) attending to a tertiary eye hospital in Nepal. Methods: This was a cross-sectional descriptive hospital-based study of all diagnosed oculocutaneous albinotic cases (16 males and 9 females; mean age of 16 years) who visited the Department of Ophthalmology at the Institute of Medicine, for ocular consultation between September 1, 2011 and December 1, 2013. Results: Twenty-five cases (50 eyes) with OCA were enrolled in the study. All the participants had maximally reduced visual acuity (mean: 1.24 ± 0.50 logMAR). Myopic astigmatism was the most common refractive error (n = 17; 34%). 58% of all participants had with-the-rule astigmatism. Considering the spherical equivalent power, most of the eyes (n = 30; 60%) had myopia, with overall mean SE refractive error of −1.59 ± 5.39 D. Visual acuity improved significantly with refractive correction in place (paired sample t-test, p < 0.05). Horizontal pendular nystagmus was the most common nystagmus (n = 34 eyes; 68%). Alternating esotropia and alternating exotropia each were observed in 16% of participants who had strabismus (40% of all cases). The diaphanous iris, foveal hypoplasia and poliosis were the most consistent clinical features. Conclusion: Patients with OCA present with a broad spectrum of visual deficits that impair the visual functions. Significant improvement in visual acuity following optical correction serves as an impetus to the reduction of visual disabilities in individuals with albinism.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1888429615000035AlbinismEsotropiaNepalNystagmusRefractive error |
| spellingShingle | Safal Khanal Amrit Pokharel Himal Kandel Visual deficits in Nepalese patients with oculocutaneous albinism Journal of Optometry Albinism Esotropia Nepal Nystagmus Refractive error |
| title | Visual deficits in Nepalese patients with oculocutaneous albinism |
| title_full | Visual deficits in Nepalese patients with oculocutaneous albinism |
| title_fullStr | Visual deficits in Nepalese patients with oculocutaneous albinism |
| title_full_unstemmed | Visual deficits in Nepalese patients with oculocutaneous albinism |
| title_short | Visual deficits in Nepalese patients with oculocutaneous albinism |
| title_sort | visual deficits in nepalese patients with oculocutaneous albinism |
| topic | Albinism Esotropia Nepal Nystagmus Refractive error |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1888429615000035 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT safalkhanal visualdeficitsinnepalesepatientswithoculocutaneousalbinism AT amritpokharel visualdeficitsinnepalesepatientswithoculocutaneousalbinism AT himalkandel visualdeficitsinnepalesepatientswithoculocutaneousalbinism |