title: Pattern of corneal pathologies in children seen at Yaoundé Gynaeco-Obstetric and Paediatric Hospital, Cameroon.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To describe the different corneal pathologies and determine the prevalence of corneal blindness amongst children aged 0-15 years, seen at the ophthalmology unit of a tertiary hospital in Cameroon.
  
  
  METHODS
  The medical records of all patients who presented to the Ophthalmic Unit between 2002 and 2010 were reviewed, retrospectively. The records of children aged 0-15 years, presenting with corneal pathologies, were further reviewed. Data collected included age, sex, past medical history, initial visual acuity, type of corneal lesion, and visual acuity at last follow-up.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Of the 7,922 children seen over the study period, 168 had corneal pathologies: a prevalence of 2.1%. Males were more affected than females (male to female ratio: 1.4:1; P = 0.008). The age range was from 2 weeks to 15 years (mean age: 7.1 years; standard deviation: 4.4 years). The leading etiologies were trauma (48.2%; n = 81) and infection (28.0%; n = 47). Amongst those with available follow-up data, visual impairment and blindness occurred in 50% of the cases (n = 12), with one case being bilateral.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Trauma is the most frequent cause of corneal blindness in children.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University of Yaoundé I, Yaoundé, Cameroon ; Yaoundé Gynaeco-Obstetric and Paediatric Hospital, Yaoundé, Cameroon.
authors.forename: Assumpta L
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Bella
authors.forename: Viola A
authors.initials: VA
authors.lastname: Dohvoma
authors.forename: André O
authors.initials: AO
authors.lastname: Eballe
authors.forename: Oumarou
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Abdouramani
keywords: childhood blindness; keratitis; ocular trauma