IJSR International Journal of Scientific Research 2277 - 8179 Indian Society for Health and Advanced Research ijsr-8-3-18319 Original Research Paper Prevalence of visual disorders among children in a tertiary hospital G Dr. March 2019 8 3 01 02 ABSTRACT

Background: Ocular diseases in children require immediate ophthal consultation to preserve vision, due to its impact on childs development, performance and learning. Aim and objective: Assessment of prevalence of visual disorders in selected 508 children attending Ophthalmology department in Kanyakumari Medical College Hospital. Materials and methods: The study is a hospital– based , non– interventional, cross–sectional prospective study. The study group comprise of children (less than 15 years) attending Ophthalmology department. Estimation of visual acuity, colour vision, anterior segment examination, slit lamp examination, dilatation and fundoscopy are done to detail the defective vision. Results: The common ocular disorders are refractive errors (37%) followed by infection/ inflammation of eye (35%), ocular trauma (9%), strabismus (5%), ptosis (2%), congenital eye diseases (1%) and cataract (0.7%). Conclusion: Majority of visual disorders are preventable or treatable and require early diagnosis and intervention procedures for best visual outcome.