Compliance with spectacle wear among learners with hearing impairment in Ghana

Michael A Kwarteng; Khathutshelo P Mashige; Samuel Kyei; Pirindhavellie Govender-Poonsamy; Daniel S Q Dogbe

doi:10.4102/ajod.v13i0.1314

Compliance with spectacle wear among learners with hearing impairment in Ghana

Afr J Disabil. 2024 Jun 13:13:1314. doi: 10.4102/ajod.v13i0.1314. eCollection 2024.

Authors

Michael A Kwarteng^{1

2

3}, Khathutshelo P Mashige², Samuel Kyei⁴, Pirindhavellie Govender-Poonsamy², Daniel S Q Dogbe⁵

Affiliations

¹ Department of Optometry, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Bindura University of Science Education, Bindura, Zimbabwe.
² Discipline of Optometry, School of Health Science, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, South Africa.
³ Optometry Unit, Department of Clinical Surgical Science, Faculty of Medical Sciences, The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine Campus, West Indies, Trinidad and Tobago.
⁴ Department of Optometry and Vision Science, School of Allied Health Sciences, University of Cape Coast, Cape Coast, Ghana.
⁵ Department of Special Education, Faculty of Education, University of Education, Winneba, Ghana.

Abstract

Background: Hearing-impaired learners with refractive problems require correction because poor vision hinders their development and educational pursuits.

Objectives: To determine the level of compliance with spectacle wear in learners with hearing impairment in Ghana.

Method: A descriptive cross-sectional study design was used to investigate the level of compliance with spectacle wear in hearing-impaired learners with uncorrected refractive errors (URE). The participants were from six schools for the hearing impaired, comprising three schools from each sector (Northern and Southern) of Ghana.

Results: Of the 1914 learners screened, 69 (3.61% CI: 2.82-4.54%) had URE. Sixty-two (89.9%) learners with URE had myopia (-0.50 Dioptre Sphere (DS) to -2.00DS), and 7 (10.1%) had hyperopia (+2.00DS to +10.00DS). There were more females (53.6%) with URE than males, and their ages ranged from 8 to 35 years, with a mean of 17.35 ± 5.19 years. Many (56.5%) learners complied with spectacle wear after 3 months of reassessment, with females being more compliant than males, but the difference was not significant (p = 0.544). Learners who complied well with the spectacle wear were those with moderate visual impairment (VI), followed by mild VI, while those with no VI were the least compliant. A significant difference was observed between spectacle compliance and presenting VI (p = 0.023).

Conclusion: The spectacle wear compliance level was high compared to a previous study (33.7%) in Ghana.

Contribution: This study highlights the importance of addressing URE among learners with hearing impairment in Ghana and Africa.

Keywords: Ghana; hearing impairment; refractive error; spectacle compliance; visual impairment.

Grants and funding

Funding information This study was funded by the African Researchers’ Initiative (ARI) research grant; Deafblind International (DbI), Switzerland; VisionSpring Inc., Africa and College of Health Science PhD Scholarship, University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.