Ocular Manifestations Among Thalassemia Patients Presenting to Tertiary Care Hospital in Jammu Region

Background: Thalassemia patients present with different types of ocular manifestations. These can be due to the disease process itself or due to iron chelation therapy. Aims: This study aims to find out the ocular manifestations in thalassemia patients at a tertiary care hospital in Jammu region. Material and Methods: It was a prospective, observational, cross-sectional, hospital-based study including 50 patients. A detailed history of the patients was taken. The ocular examination included the detailed slit lamp examination of the anterior segment, the colour vision, detailed fundus examination, refraction, and Schirmer test for dry eyes. Results: Out of 50 patients, 19 patients (38%) had ocular manifestations and these included dry eyes (30%), refractive errors (20%), colour vision defects (6%), disc hyperaemia (6%), AV tortuosity (4%), tessellated fundus (2%) and pseudoxanthoma elasticum (6%). Conclusion: In our study, we concluded that dry eyes were the most common ocular manifestations of thalassemia, followed by, refractive errors, colour vision defects, disc hyperaemia, AV tortuosity, tessellated fundus and pseudoxanthoma elasticum. Therefore, regular ophthalmological examination is essential to detect and manage these manifestations as soon as possible.