Authors: Tambwe Ndumb H, Shombo Djoma A, Kongolo Tambwe D, Kangakolo Bintilumami, Chenge Borasisi G, Kaimbo wa Kaimbo D, Ngoie Maloba V.
Introduction: The aim of this study was to assess the impact of refractive anomalies on the academic performance of students in Lubumbashi.
Methodology: This was a cross-sectional and analytical study with prospective data collection carried out in 6 schools in the city of Lubumbashi over a period of fourteen months and four days from February 24, 2023 to May 31, 2024. We carried out random sampling with a sample size of 407 students. All students present in each targeted school who responded to our questionnaire and whose ages varied between 5 and 19 years were included in the study. Any student with a VA ≤ 7/10 is ametropic.
Results: There were 162 (39.8%) cases of ametropia, of which 111 (68.5%) were myopic, 33 (20.4%) astigmatic and 15 cases of hyperopia. The age group of 12 to 14 years was the majority (46.3%) p = 0.000. The average age was 12.6 ± 2.5 years (p = 0.776). There was a slight female predominance, 56.8% F / M sex ratio of 1.3. Of all the students, the notion of repeating a class was observed in 97 (23.8%) students. Among the ametropes, there were 31.5% (n = 51) cases of repeating a class. We noted a statistically significant association between ametropia and grade repetition (p=0.003), ametropic students had 1.7 times the risk of grade repetition compared to nonametropic students (RR: 1.7; CI: 1.187-2.369).
Conclusion: Ametropia is a real public health problem, its frequency in schools remains significant. Refractive errors negatively affect students' academic performance significantly
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