Prevalence Of Refractive Errors Among Medical Students In Benghazi University

Adel Ahmed El Obeidi, Mohammad Hassan Ajram Mahmoud

Abstract


Background: Refractive errors (REs) are common and continue to increase globally. Uncorrected REs are the second leading cause of preventable blindness and the most common cause of visual impairment. Aim of the study: The objective of the study was to determine the prevalence of refractive errors and its association with age, gender among the students of Medical Sciences colleges in Benghazi university, Libya. Patients & Methods: This cross sectional study was performed in the department of ophthalmology, Benghazi university during the period from December 2023 to March 2024 (4 months). The target population of the study was 200 students aged 19-25 years, of Medical Sciences colleges in Benghazi university. The selected students were invited to participate in the study, students already had pre-existing ocular causes of decreased visual acuity and so were not eligible for the study were excluded from the study Results: the age was 23.3. ± 1.02 years, patients were 116 (58%) females and 84 (42%) females. The overall prevalence rate of myopia was 58.75%, hypermetropia was 2.5% and astigmatism was 37.75%. myopia was recoded in 20 males versus 27 females, hypermetropia was recorded in one male versus one female, while Astigmatism was recorded in 16 males versus 15 females. refractive errors were more in the age group (23-25 years). Conclusion: Prevalence rates of myopia in medical students are found to be quite high myopia is the predominant refractive error among the medical students and correction of refractive error could benefit the society and nation at large.


Keywords


Astigmatism; hypermetropia; Myopia; Refractive errors

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References


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DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.52155/ijpsat.v44.2.6223

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