Factors Affecting Unmet Need for Presbyopia Correction Among School Teachers in Debre Tabor Town, Northwest Ethiopia

Abstract

Background

Uncorrected presbyopia is the leading cause of near visual impairment among working-age adults in the world. In Ethiopia, there was limited evidence on the magnitude of uncorrected presbyopia and its associated factors among school teachers. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the magnitude of untreated presbyopia and its associated factors among school teachers in Debre Tabor town, Northwest Ethiopia.

Methods

An institution-based cross-sectional study was conducted on 448 school teachers at Debre Tabor town using a simple random sampling technique. The data were collected using a face-to-face interview and a comprehensive ocular examination. A binary multivariable logistic regression model was conducted to identify associated factors of the uncorrected presbyopia.

Results

Generally, the prevalence of uncorrected presbyopia among school teachers was 63.62% (95% CI: 59.2–67.9). Age (35–45) (AOR: 4.56, 95% CI: 1.74, 11.91), female gender (AOR: 3.03, 95% CI: 1.75, 5.26), unaware of presbyopia (AOR: 2.35, 95% CI: 1.30, 4.25), unaware of refraction site (AOR: 4.21, 95% CI: 2.42, 7.33), no eye checkup history (AOR: 2.76, 95% CI: 1.52, 5.01), and no family history of spectacle use (AOR: 2.61, 95% 4.67) were significantly associated with uncorrected presbyopia.

Conclusion

In the current study, the magnitude of uncorrected presbyopia was high. Age below 45 years, female gender, lack of awareness of presbyopia and refraction site, lack of history of eye checkups, and family spectacle use were significantly associated with uncorrected presbyopia. The early correction of presbyopia, health education on presbyopia, and the provision of affordable spectacle corrections for school teachers were recommended.

Keywords:

• Debre Tabor
• Ethiopia
• magnitude
• presbyopia

Abbreviations

AOR, Adjusted Odds Ratio; CI, Confidence Interval; COR, Crude Odds Ratio; WHO, World Health Organization.

Ethics Approval and Informed Consent

This study was conducted in line with the Declaration of Helsinki. A formal authorization paper was also received from the Debre Tabor health office and each school’s directors, in addition to ethical approval from the University of Gondar’s College of Medicine and Health Sciences, School of Medicine, Ethical Review Committee. Following an explanation of the study’s objectives, written informed consent was obtained from each study participant, and each study subject was informed of their right to withdraw from the study at any moment throughout the interview and examination. The study subjects’ privacy was well maintained.

Acknowledgments

We would like to express our deepest gratitude to the data collectors who faced an exhaustive data collection process. We wish to thank the study participants for their willingness to participate in the study.

Disclosure

The authors declare that no conflicts of interest exist.