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The second method, an aetiological classification, classifies blindness according to underlying cause. This method uses categories based on the time of onset of the condition:. Information about underlying causes of blindness, although often more difficult to collect, is more useful for planning. Most data from low- and middle-income countries have come from examining children attending schools for the blind, whereas data from industrialised countries come from multiple sources.

Regional variation in childhood blindness: Most of the data were collected using best corrected visual acuity, as had been recommended by WHO.

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This meant that blindness due to uncorrected refractive error was not included. Recently, however, the WHO definition of blindness has been changed: This means that uncorrected refractive errors can now be included as a cause of blindness; hopefully, the corresponding data will be reported in the future.

Regional variations.
Blindness in children: a worldwide perspective?
The 21st Century Virtual Classroom.

In affluent regions, lesions of the central nervous system often associated with prematurity predominate, whereas hereditary diseases are more important in industrialised countries and the Middle East. Perinatal factors, such as retinopathy of prematurity, are important in middle-income regions, i. Latin America and the former socialist economies of Eastern Europe.

In all regions, the underlying causes could not be determined in a high proportion of children.

The anatomical site most commonly affected is the retina , children , followed by corneal scarring , , and lesions of the whole globe , Hereditary factors , are the commonest underlying causes, followed by acquired conditions of childhood , Economic development and specific interventions are changing the pattern of blindness in children all over the world, including India. In middle-income countries, neonatal intensive care services are expanding; retinopathy of prematurity is now a major potentially avoidable cause of childhood blindness in many countries in Latin America, Eastern Europe, and cities in Asia.

VISION advocates planning for the control of blindness in children for a total population of 10 million. Preventable causes can be reduced at the primary level of service delivery, whereas treatable causes require specialised paediatric ophthalmology units, systems for early identification, referral and follow-up, and increased public awareness. Holistic, comprehensive, multi-sectoral approaches are needed, including provision for children with low vision.

Magnitude and causes of blindness in children per 10 million total population in different regions. Ideally, data on the causes of blindness should be obtained by examining children in the community, not in schools for the blind; the key informant method discussed on page 30 has been proven to be highly effective. National Center for Biotechnology Information , U.

Journal List Community Eye Health v. Gogate Parikshit and Gilbert Clare. Find articles by Gogate Parikshit.

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