Causes of blindness in children. 1046 cases registered with the Canadian National Institute for the Blind 1970-1973.
During the period 1970-73, 1,046 children under 20 years of age were registered with the Canadian National Institute for the Blind. The three most common registration diagnoses were Cataract (13%), Optic Atrophy (12%) and Nystagmus (10%); Retrolental Fibroplasia was responsible for a smaller proportion (6%). Twenty per cent of the registration diagnoses were non-specific and included "Nystagmus", "Site or Type not Established", "Affection of Visual Centre" and "Amblyopia". Without a specific diagnosis one could not decide whether the blindness was due to genetic or environmental causes. It is recommended that the C.N.I.B. establish a procedure by which children with a non-specific registration diagnosis can be referred for further investigation.
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001766:Blindness / Q000209:etiology*; D002170:Canada; D002386:Cataract / Q000150:complications; D002829:Choroid; D005128:Eye Diseases / Q000235:genetics; D006077:Government Agencies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009759:Nystagmus, Pathologic / Q000150:complications; D009896:Optic Atrophy / Q000150:complications; D012042:Registries; D012164:Retinal Diseases / Q000150:complications; D014603:Uveal Diseases / Q000150:complications