Abstract:
Background: Presbyopia is an age-related loss of lens accommodation that results in an
inability to focus at near distances. Globally, 2.2 billion people have vision impairment. Of
these, at least 1 billion, mainly living in low-and middle-income regions, have a vision
impairment that could have been prevented, corrected or cured. It is the most common
physiological change occurring in the adult eye and is thought to cause universal near
vision impairment with advancing age. Up to 80% of clients with uncorrected presbyopia
reported difficulty in performing near vision tasks such as reading, and writing.
Methods: School-based cross-sectional study was conducted in Wolkite town among
school teachers from April 2 to May 2/2023. Data were collected by trained optometrist on
a face to face interview using structured questionnaire. Simple random sampling
techniques were used to sample 293 study participants. Distance and near visual acuities
were measured by optometrists using Snellen‟s illiterate E chart at 6 m and 40 cm,
respectively. Data were entered to Epi-data Version 3 and then exported to SPSS V20 for
analysis. Binary logistic regression analysis was performed to select candidate variables.
Variables in bivariate analysis with P-value of< 0.25 were taken as candidates for
multivariable analysis. The Odds ratio with 95% confidence interval was used to assess the
association. Level of statistical significance was declared at p value < 0.05.
Result: Prevalence of presbyopia among school teachers was 68.3% at 95% confidence
interval (CI) (63.1%–73.5%). On multivariable analysis; age 46 & above (AOR: 3.5, 95%
CI: (1.8-5.1), secondary school level (AOR= 1.98, 95% CI: (1.1-3.6)), teachers who wear
spectacle (AOR=2.4(1.2-5.1)), family history of eye problem (AOR= 3.6, 95% CI: (1.7-
7.4)), and cigarette smoking (AOR= 5.5, 95% CI: (2.3-12.9) were positively and
significantly associated with presbyopia.
Conclusion and recommendation: The study had demonstrated a higher prevalence of
presbyopia among school teachers. Older age, teachers who teach secondary school,
smoking cigarette, eye problem in the family and teachers who wear were factors
associated with presbyopia, Regular checkup of visual status is better to be done.
