The Causes and Frequency of Monocular and Binocular Blindness in Adults Applying to the Health Committee of a University Hospital in Central Anatolia

Abstract

Objectives:The aim of this study was to investigate the frequency of blindness and the pathologies that cause blindness in the Konya province of Turkey.Materials and Methods:The records of individuals over 18 years of age who applied to the health committee of Meram School of Medicine Hospital between January 2015 and December 2018 were evaluated retrospectively.Results:After reviewing the records of 4,268 applicants, a total of 222 applicants were included in the study (159 patients with monocular blindness, 63 patients with binocular blindness). The most common causes of monocular blindness were optic atrophy (13%), amblyopia (11%), and phthisis bulbi (10%). The most common causes of binocular blindness were retinitis pigmentosa (28%), proliferative diabetic retinopathy (13%), and unoperated cataract (11%). The frequency of monocular blindness was 3.7% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 3.2-4.3%) and binocular blindness was 1.5% (95% CI: 1.1-1.9%) in the sample. The frequency of blindness increased with age, with a positive correlation between mean age and blindness (p=0.002). Monocular blind applicants had a significantly lower mean age than binocular blind applicants (48.8±13.3 vs. 55.0±13.1 years, p=0.002) and binocular blind women had a significantly higher mean age than binocular blind men (62.7±16.0 vs. 53.2±11.7 years, p=0.023). The prevalence of monocular and binocular blindness was significantly higher in men than women (p=0.032).Conclusion:The results of this study show that many of the pathologies that cause blindness are preventable or treatable, and that blindness is associated with age.

Keywords

• blindness
• prevalence
• retinitis pigmentosa
• proliferative diabetic retinopathy
• cataract