Pattern and Associated Factors for Retinal vein occlusion at Tertiary hospital in Tanzania.

medicine

Background: Retinal vein occlusion (RVO) is among the common causes of visual impairment and blindness especially in middle age and elderly individuals, after diabetic retinopathy. Aim: This study aimed to assess the pattern and associated factors for RVO, among patients with the RVO at a tertiary Hospital in Tanzania. Methodology: A hospital-based descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted at the Retina clinic, Muhimbili National Hospital, from June to December 2020. A total of 73 adults aged 18 years and above were enrolled in the study. A detailed history, ophthalmic and systemic examinations, laboratory investigations and optic coherence tomography were performed. Data were analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences 22.0. Results: A total of 73 (7.9%) participants had RVO during the study period. Three (4.1%) patients had bilateral involvement giving a total of 76 eyes. More than half (56.1%) of participants were aged above 61 years. Males were more with a male to female ratio of 1.5:1. Central retinal vein occlusion(CRVO) accounted for 39(51.3%) eyes. Ischemic retinal vein occlusion was seen in 18(46.1%) eyes with central retinal vein occlusion. Hypertension (89.0%), hyperlipidemia (72.6%), diabetes mellitus (49.3%) and glaucoma (20.6%), were the common conditions found. Severe visual impairment and blindness were seen in more than half of the eyes 40(52.6%). The most common complication encountered was macular edema 48(70.6%). Conclusion: RVO is a significant cause of visual impairment and blindness. Therefore we recommend early identification of the associated factors for RVO and prompt treatment to reduce the incidence of RVO and the complications.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.