Reasons for the Delay in the Management of Blinding Cataracts at the Bartimée Ophthalmological Clinic in Guinea

Objective: To determine the reasons for the delay in the management of blinding cataracts among patients seen at an eye clinic in Conakry, Guinea. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study conducted at the Bartimée Ophthalmology Clinic, Conakry between February 1 and July 31, 2024. Patients with blinding cataracts were included. The information collected was epidemiological and the clinical data were related to the delay in cataract treatment. Epi info version 7.4.0 was used for data analysis. Results: A total of 150 patients who had blinding cataracts were studied. This accounted for 4.97% of the 3015 cases of cataracts that were seen during the study period. Average age was 66.26 ± 17.5 years and male to female ratio was 2.19:1. The most common socio-professional stratum was that of farmers/unskilled workers (29.3%). About half (52.7%) of the patients came from Conakry and 68.7% of the patients were illiterate. The majority (84.0%) of the patients had a duration of vision loss ranging between 1 and 4 years. All patients had visual acuity ˂3/60 in both eyes. The main obstacle was the high cost of care (86.5%). Nearly half (42.7%) of the patients perceived cataracts as a gift from God. Conclusion: In this study, several factors related to both the patients and their environment lead to the delay in the management of blinding cataracts, the most frequent of which is the high cost of care. This demonstrates the urgent need for concerted efforts towards making eye care more affordable to patients.