Profile of Ocular Disorders in Paediatric Patients Attending a Tertiary Care Hospital in Kashmir

Background: Paediatric ocular disorders are a cause of visual impairment if not treated appropriately and can result in public health problems because of associated socioeconomic consequences. Aims and Objective: The study was aimed to determine the pattern of ocular disorders in paediatric patients. Setting and Design: retrospective study involving review of records of 1200 patients between three to 16 years of age over a period of two years. Materials and Methods: Information was obtained with regard to age, gender, presenting complaints, duration of presenting symptoms, diagnosis, previous treatment received by patient, best corrected visual acuity. Statistical Analysis: Data was analyzed using STATA version 15. Results: In our study, there were 720 (60%) male patients and 480 (40%) female patients. Mean age of study patients was 9±2 years. About 60% of patients had good visual acuity better than or equal to 6/9 while 6% patients had visual acuity of < 6/60. Refractive error was the main ocular disorder seen in 37.5% patients in our study followed by conjunctivitis and strabismus. Congenital ocular anomalies were seen in 5% patients of which congenital cataract was seen in 30% of cases. Conclusion: Visual impairment in children can have negative impact on their quality of life. Main causes of ocular morbidity in this study are both preventable and treatable. Hence, proper screening of children and timely management is important to prevent risk of developing visual impairment in these patients.