By Sade Oguntola

Copyright tribuneonlineng

E XPERTS have stated that vision impairment among patients with diabetes mellitus in sub-shara Africa is relatively high, noting that 29 per cent of diabetic patients in the region experience visual impairment.

They stated that the substantial prevalence of vision impairment among diabetic patients in sub-Sahara Africa underscores the critical need for effective diabetes management and early screening to mitigate this serious complication.

The systematic review and meta-analysis of vision impairment among patients with diabetes mellitus in sub-Sahara Africa reported that the prevalence of moderate visual impairment was 15.7 per cent, severe visual impairment was 5.1 per cent, and blindness was 7.0 per cent.

They added: “The findings in this study are considerably higher than those reported in other regions.”

According to the report, the most common causes of visual impairment were diabetic retinopathy (35 per cent), followed by cataracts (34 per cent) and diabetic maculopathy (26 per cent).

These factors—such as poor blood sugar control, longer duration of diabetes, obesity, lack of physical activity, age over 56 years, and hypertension—were associated with visual impairment.

The review included observational studies on vision loss in diabetic patients and involved 12,508 participants from 14 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. It was published in PLoS One.

According to them, diabetes is an increasing public health challenge in this region, where healthcare resources are often limited. Vision impairment is a significant complication that adversely affects quality of life, productivity, and independence.

They advocated for proper management of diabetes mellitus to prevent visual impairment and emphasized the importance of early detection through screening and regular follow-up to reduce and control the burden of visual impairment in the diabetic population.

Visual impairment is a functional limitation of the eye(s) caused by various medical conditions, including diabetes mellitus (DM), which cause visual field loss, decreased visual acuity, visual distortion, perceptual difficulties, or any combination of these effects.

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Some causes of visual impairment include refractive errors, cataracts, glaucoma, corneal opacity, age-related macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, trachoma, trauma, and systemic disorders such as hyperthyroidism, rheumatoid arthritis, and hypertension.

Visual impairment negatively affects people’s quality of life, mobility, visual function, emotional well-being, and social interactions, as well as being a significant financial burden on the global economy.