Volume : 8, Issue : 10, October - 2019

An assessment of Xeropthalmia problem among school going children in Urban Slums of Raipur

Dr Vinod Gedam, Dr. Praphull Kumar Dewangan

Abstract :

Introduction: Present study was carried out in school children (6-15 years age) from slum areas of Raipur city near its Urban Health Centre to see the Magnitude of Xerophthalmia. Very few studies have been done to clinically assess the extent of Ocular manifestations of Vitamin A deficiency in primary school children Method: Study was designed as a cross sectional study conducted in primary schools of urban slums of Raipur city near its Urban Health Centre . 1000 children were randomly selected from 10 schools and examined . From each school 100 children were randomly selected from standard I-VII. Xerophthalmia was diagnosed if there was a history of night blindness, or on examination, there were signs of conjunctival xerosis, Bitot’s spots, corneal xerosis or keratomalacia. Information was analysed by using the Microsoft Excel and SPSS . Chi square test was used for analysis. Results: 0.5% cases of night blindness, 1.4% cases of conjunctival xerosis and 2.1% cases of Bitot’s spot were found. Types of family, lower social class (class IV & V) and poor intakes of green vegetables were significantly associated with the vitamin A deficiency. Conclusion: Study showed that this preventable cause of ocular morbidity is still prevalent in fair magnitude. Studies are needed on this issue to highlight the importance