title: Prevalence and causes of visual impairment and blindness in a rural population in Sepang district, Selangor.
abstract: A community based cross-sectional study was carried out to determine the prevalence and causes of visual impairment and blindness in residents aged forty years and above in kampung Jenderam Hilir of Sepang district, Selangor state. A total of 311 out of 341 (91.3%) respondents participated in this study. The prevalence of visual impairment and blindness observed was 18.9% and 2.9% respectively. The prevalence of visual impairment and blindness increased significantly with age. Amongst the 159 respondents who agreed for eye checkup, refractive errors (56%), cataract (20.1%), glaucoma (4.4%) and diabetic retinopathy (1.3%) were found to be causing visual impairment and blindness.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University Putra Malaysia, Serdang, Selangor.
authors.forename: S C
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Reddy
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Rampal
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Nurulaini
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001766:Blindness / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology*; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008296:Malaysia / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D012424:Rural Population; D014786:Vision Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology*