PMID- 16510340
OWN - NLM
STAT- MEDLINE
DCOM- 20060404
LR  - 20061115
IS  - 0928-6586 (Print)
IS  - 0928-6586 (Linking)
VI  - 13
IP  - 1
DP  - 2006 Feb
TI  - Childhood blindness at a school for the blind in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
PG  - 1-5
AB  - PURPOSE: To determine the major causes of eye diseases leading to visual loss and 
      blindness among children attending a school for the blind in Riyadh, Saudi 
      Arabia. METHODS: A total of 217 school children with visual disabilities 
      attending a school for the blind in Riyadh were included. All children were 
      brought to The Eye Center, Riyadh, and had complete ophthalmologic examinations 
      including visual acuity testing, biomicroscopy, ophthalmoscopy, tonometry and 
      laboratory investigations. In addition, some patients were subjected to 
      electroretinography (ERG), electrooculography (EOG), measurement of visual evoked 
      potentials (VEP), and laboratory work-up for congenital disorders. RESULTS: There 
      were 117 male students with an age range of 6-19 years and a mean age of 16 
      years. In addition, there were 100 females with an age range of 6-18 years and a 
      mean age of 12 years. Of the 217 children, 194 (89%) were blind from genetically 
      determined diseases or congenital disorders and 23 (11%) were blind from acquired 
      diseases. The major causes of bilateral blindness in children were retinal 
      degeneration, congenital glaucoma, and optic atrophy. The most common acquired 
      causes of childhood blindness were infections and trauma. CONCLUSION: The 
      etiological pattern of childhood blindness in Saudi Arabia has changed from 
      microbial keratitis to genetically determined diseases of the retina and optic 
      nerve. Currently, the most common causes of childhood blindness are genetically 
      determined causes. Consanguineous marriages may account for the autosomal 
      recessive disorders. Public education programs should include information for the 
      prevention of trauma and genetic counseling. Eye examinations for preschool and 
      school children are mandatory for the prevention and cure of blinding disorders.
FAU - Kotb, Amgad A
AU  - Kotb AA
AD  - Eye Center and Eye Foundation for Research in Ophthalmology, Riyadh, Saudi 
      Arabia.
FAU - Hammouda, Ehab F
AU  - Hammouda EF
FAU - Tabbara, Khalid F
AU  - Tabbara KF
LA  - eng
PT  - Comparative Study
PT  - Journal Article
PT  - Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
PL  - England
TA  - Ophthalmic Epidemiol
JT  - Ophthalmic epidemiology
JID - 9435674
SB  - IM
MH  - Adolescent
MH  - Adult
MH  - Age Distribution
MH  - Age of Onset
MH  - Blindness/diagnosis/*epidemiology/etiology
MH  - Child
MH  - Electrooculography
MH  - Electroretinography
MH  - Female
MH  - Fluorescein Angiography
MH  - Fundus Oculi
MH  - Humans
MH  - Incidence
MH  - Male
MH  - Optic Nerve Diseases/complications
MH  - Retinal Diseases/complications
MH  - Risk Factors
MH  - Saudi Arabia/epidemiology
MH  - Schools/*statistics & numerical data
MH  - Sex Distribution
MH  - Visual Acuity
EDAT- 2006/03/03 09:00
MHDA- 2006/04/06 09:00
CRDT- 2006/03/03 09:00
PHST- 2006/03/03 09:00 [pubmed]
PHST- 2006/04/06 09:00 [medline]
PHST- 2006/03/03 09:00 [entrez]
AID - X1410638173M8N9L [pii]
AID - 10.1080/09286580500477317 [doi]
PST - ppublish
SO  - Ophthalmic Epidemiol. 2006 Feb;13(1):1-5. doi: 10.1080/09286580500477317.