To determine the prevalence and type of anisometropia among school going children and to study association of degree of anisometropia with severity of amblyopia. A hospital based cross-sectional ...study carried on 500 school going children up to 10th grade (Age group:- 5 years to 16 years) selected by non-probability convenient sampling according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria. The clinical profile of these children was evaluated in department of ophthalmology, P.D.U Govt. medical college, Rajkot and they underwent detail visual assessment and ophthalmic examinations including measurement of uncorrected visual acuity, best corrected visual acuity, auto-refraction, retinoscopy, subjective correction and detailed squint evaluation, if present. During period of November 2019 to February 2021 during school health programme. Total of 500 school going children were enrolled in the study, out of which 221(44.2%) were females and 279 (55.8%) were males. The prevalence of anisometropia in our study was 23.8% (119 childrens out of 500 childrens). Out of total 119 childrens, 47 were males (39.5%) and 72 were females (60.5%). Maximum patients with anisometropia (n=54 out of 119 patients) were having compound hypermetropia. Prevalance of anisometropia increased as the age increased, till age of 14 years, and then again there occurs a declining trend. X2 = 10.139, p value = 0.051 and it was statistically significant. In our study, prevalence of amblyopia was 8.8% (n=44 out of 500 patients) and among amblyopic patients, 59% patients (n=26 out of 44 patients) had amblyopia due to anisometropia. Out of 26 patients with amblyopia due to anisometropia, 73.1% patients (n= 19 out of 26 patients) were anisohypermetropic and 26.9% patients (n= 7 out of 26 patients) were anisomyopic. In our study, depth and prevalence of amblyopia increased as the degree of anisometropia increased and it was found to be statistically significant(p=0.045). Our study concludes that the prevalence of anisometropia was high (59%) among the amblyopic patients with maximum patients having compound hypermetropic anisometropia. Depth and prevalence of amblyopia increased as the degree of anisometropia increased.
Aim
Cerebral visual impairment (CVI), a frequently occurring functional impairment in children with neurodevelopmental disorders, leads to communicative, social and academic challenges. In Norway, ...children with neurodevelopmental disorders are assessed at paediatric habilitation centres. Our aims were to explore how CVI is identified, how paediatric habilitation centres assess their CVI competence and the reported prevalence of CVI among children with cerebral palsy.
Methods
An electronic questionnaire was sent to all 19 Norwegian paediatric habilitation centre leaders in January 2022. The results were analysed quantitatively and qualitatively. The prevalence of CVI among children with cerebral palsy was estimated using register‐based data.
Results
The questionnaire was answered by 17. Only three judged their habilitation centre as having sufficient competence on CVI. None of the centres used screening questionnaires systematically, and 11 reported that CVI assessment was not good enough. Awareness that a child may have CVI typically occurred during examinations for other diagnoses. The prevalence of CVI among children with cerebral palsy was only 8%, while CVI status was unknown in 33%.
Conclusion
Better knowledge and assessment of CVI at Norwegian paediatric habilitation centres are needed. CVI appears to be often overlooked in children with neurodevelopmental disorders.
The tourism experience has always been a hot topic in tourism research. However, the tourism experience of people with visual impairment (PwVI) has its own particularity. This paper explores the ...unique tourism experience of PwVI based on travel notes written by them. Since PwVI are often accompanied by volunteers when travelling, this paper also discusses the impact of the interaction between volunteers and PwVI on the tourism experience, and analyses the intermediary role of the sense of helplessness experienced by PwVI in the above impact. The empirical results based on a self-administered questionnaire completed by visually impaired groups show that ① the interaction between volunteers and PwVI has a significant positive correlation with the seven unique tourism experiences of PwVI, and ② This correlation is partially mediated by the sense of helplessness. The results show that positive interaction helps to reduce the sense of helplessness of PwVI and thus improves their tourism experience.
Looking at the number of visually disabled people population of Uttar Pradesh, there has been a paucity of evidence available on their perception and rehabilitation. This study was conducted to ...explore the perceptions and possible barriers to the uptake of visual rehabilitation services among visually disabled patients and their families in western Uttar Pradesh. A qualitative investigation using one-to-one interviews with the convenience sampling method in the subjects severely visually disabled (Blind) participants, and their family members. The unstructured interviews were conducted by an independent interviewer. All the interviews were conducted in Hindi. The anonymous quotes of transcripts were translated into English for reporting purposes. A total of 32 interviews were conducted. 16 Participants were between 12 to 52 years of age. Parents of participants who were less than 18 years of age were present during the interview. For the rest 16 patients below 10 years of age, interviews were conducted with their parents. The discussion of each interview was transcribed. The interviews ranged in length from 12 to 30 minutes. From content analysis, four main themes were identified. They are; 1) the denial phase of parents, 2) over protective families, 3) social stigma, and 4) awareness of rehabilitation services, training centers, and government policies in communities. While the majority (95%) were aware of railway discounts many participants had not been aware of other welfare schemes run by the state government. Only 15% had heard of rehabilitation services in the state and vocational training facilities. This study highlights three major challenges in the rehabilitation of visually disabled people in western Uttar Pradesh: 1) The availability of rehabilitation services in the study area, 2) The awareness of visually disabled people about these services, and, 3) The robust strategy for creating awareness about these services at the community level.
The central premise of this research is the belief that using the Web non-visually is cognitively burdensome and tedious due to its complex, sight-centered design. There exists a literature gap on ...visually impaired (VI) users’ perceptions and experiences regarding Web site complexity. This paper reports the findings from a survey of 50 visually impaired individuals regarding perceived complexity and usability of a popular shopping Web site and its less complex version. Results show that significant gains in usability could be achieved by reducing complexity in Web design. A theoretical model of perceived complexity and associated propositions are presented to guide future research on improving the VI user experience of Web sites and Web applications.
PurposeTo evaluate the changes in visual impairment (VI) due to age‐related macular degeneration (AMD) during the past 40 years and the impact of novel therapies at population level.MethodsIn this ...nationwide register‐based study, we assessed the incidence, prevalence, severity, and onset age of VI due to AMD based on the Finnish Register of Visual Impairment data from 1980 to 2019. Our data included 30 016 visually impaired persons with AMD as the main diagnosis for VI. The number of persons treated with intravitreal injections in Finland was obtained from hospital data kept by the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare.ResultsBetween the 1980s and the 2010s, the incidence of reported VI doubled; however, this increase has stagnated in the 2010s. Since 2012, the prevalence of reported VI has decreased. The number of patients treated with intravitreal injections showed a 40‐fold increase during 2005–2019. The severity of reported VI has decreased whereas the mean age at the onset of reported VI has increased during the 40 years. The age‐adjusted incidence and prevalence of reported VI were significantly higher in females in comparison to males in all decades.ConclusionIncrease in the incidence and prevalence of VI due to AMD in the past decades has stagnated and shifted to older age in the 2010s when therapies for exudative class became commonly available. Furthermore, the prognosis of VI has improved during the past 40 years. These positive trends are likely contributable to improved diagnostic tools, earlier diagnoses, and new therapy options.
Objective
The cyclin‐dependent kinase like 5 (CDKL5) gene is a known cause of early onset developmental and epileptic encephalopathy, also known as CDKL5 deficiency disorder (CDD). We sought to (1) ...provide a description of seizure types in patients with CDD, (2) provide an assessment of the frequency of seizure‐free periods and cortical visual impairment (CVI), (3) correlate these features with genotype and gender, and (4) correlate these features with developmental milestones.
Methods
This is a cohort study of patients with CDD. Phenotypic features were explored and correlated with gene variant grouping and gender. A developmental score was created based on achieving seven primary milestones. Phenotypic variables were correlated with the developmental score to explore markers of better developmental outcomes. Multivariate linear regression was used to account for age at last visit.
Results
Ninety‐two patients with CDD were seen during the enrollment period. Eighteen were male (19%); median age at last visit was 5 years (interquartile range = 2.0‐11.0). Eighty‐one percent of patients developed epileptic spasms, but only 47% of those also had hypsarrhythmia. Previously described hypermotor‐tonic‐spasms sequence was seen in only 24% of patients, but 56% of patients had seizures with multiple phases (often tonic and spasms). Forty‐three percent of patients experienced a seizure‐free period ranging from 1 to >12 months, but only 6% were still seizure‐free at the last visit. CVI was present in 75% of all CDD patients. None of these features was associated with genotype group or gender. CVI was correlated with reduced milestone achievement after adjusting for age at last visit and a history of hypsarrhythmia.
Significance
The most common seizure types in CDD are epileptic spasms (often without hypsarrhythmia) and tonic seizures that may cluster together. CVI is a common feature in CDD and is correlated with achieving fewer milestones.
Two exploring hands, two eyes that can only imagine. If there is something truly universal in this world, that everyone should be granted access to, that is art in all its forms. Yet, the ...accessibility of art to people with visual impairment has been for a long time mostly intended as the elimination of architectural barriers; however, it is necessary to work on the sensory, experiential and cognitive aspects, in order to allow blind people to truly access and enjoy artworks, paving the way to the right – for everyone - to live the aesthetic experience. In an inclusive perspective, the book proposes a methodological-didactic approach for all for the ‘translation’ of perspective-based paintings into a language which can be accessed by visually impaired users. Communicating such works to a non-sighted audience does not only mean to render them into a tactically explorable three-dimensional form: Renaissance perspective-based paintings embody different values, symbolic messages and meanings which are strictly linked to the application of perspective and whose acknowledgment does not pass through the eyes but through understanding and intellect. The proposed methodological approach works on two fronts: firstly, the search for the figurative equivalent of perspective space; secondly, the research on the aesthetic equivalent, which includes the former and completes it, allowing access to the actual aesthetic experience. Therefore, an augmented and inclusive communication of the artwork must include a well-structured didactic apparatus in order to convey not only the visual qualities of the work translated into tactile form but also all the meanings connected to it, including the possible multisensory stimuli it can evoke. Such kind of representational and communication strategies are beneficial to a generic audience as well, providing the opportunity to experience an alternative way to ‘enter’ the work of art. In particular, the multisensory experience fully reflects the most authentic spirit of inclusion as it adds ‘feeling’ to the artistic experience, so that sighted people find out they can ‘see more’, and better. Research methodology is based on the traditional methods of descriptive geometry (reverse perspective, accelerated solid perspective) and Information and Communication Technologies (3D modeling, 3D printing) and it was applied to two case studies, The Feast of Herod in the versions by Benozzo Gozzoli and Filippo Lippi.
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