Affiliations: [a] Department of Ophthalmology, Irmandade da Santa Casa de Misericórdia de São Paulo, Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil
| [b]
Santa Casa de São Paulo School of Medical Sciences, Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil
Correspondence:
[*]
Corresponding author: Niro Kasahara, Santa Casa de Sao Paulo School of Medical Sciences, Rua Sao Mauro, 292, São Paulo, SP 02526-050, Brazil. E-mail: niro.kasahara@fcmsantacasasp.edu.br; ORCID ID: 0000-0003-4101-0304.
Note: [1] Presented in part at the ARVO Annual Meeting, Vancouver, April 28 – May 02, 2019.
Abstract: PURPOSE:To assess the functional capabilities and performance in children with visual impairment who live in a developing country. METHODS:This was a case-control study, including binocular and monocular visually impaired children and non-visually disabled controls aged between 4 and 12 years. All participants underwent a basic ophthalmic exam and caregivers answered the Pediatric Evaluation of Disability Inventory (PEDI). The results were compared among the groups with ANOVA. RESULTS:The sample included 35 children with visual disability (21 binocular and 14 monocular) and 23 age-matched controls. The groups did not differ in age, gender, and ethnicity. For the functional skills scale, binocular impaired children had lower scores than children from the monocular group and controls in all three domains – self-care (59.6±33.0, P < 0.001), mobility (38.5±26.6, P < 0.001), and social function (61.0±28.2, P < 0.001). For the caregiver assistance scale, children from the binocular group presented lower scores in the self-care (64.7±29.6, P = 0.002), mobility (50.6±36.3, P < 0.001), and social function (65.9±33.4, P = 0.008) domains as compared to monocular and controls. Children with monocular visual disability presented very similar scores to controls (all P > 0.05). CONCLUSION:Children with binocular visual impairment presented some degree of difficulty with everyday functioning whereas monocular visual impairment did not cause any limitation in function.
Keywords: Functional development, Pediatric Evaluation of Disability Inventory, visual impairment, children
