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Glaucoma
Published in Ching-Yu Cheng, Tien Yin Wong, Ophthalmic Epidemiology, 2022
Zhi Da Soh, Victor Koh, Ching-Yu Cheng
Optometrists are primary providers of eye care services and, thus, represent a valuable avenue for disease detection. Importantly, optometrists with adequate training are capable of making appropriate diagnostic and management decisions.88,89 However, optometrists’ participation in glaucoma detection varies widely between countries, depending on the maturity and training of the profession, among other factors.90,91 In Australia, individuals who consulted an optometrist were 1.87-fold (95% CI 1.50, 2.30) more likely to be diagnosed with age-related macular degeneration, cataract, and glaucoma.76 However, many optical practices across the world do not offer additional examination beyond refraction and prescription of optical aids.79 Furthermore, the top-down approach in medical care often renders patients in a passive role, which may affect compliance with eye care advice.
The fundamentals of health care education
Published in Joseph A. Balogun, Health Care Education in Nigeria, 2020
Similar to the medical and dental programs, nursing, pharmacy, physiotherapy, and optometry programs also require a license to practice. They also have educational opportunities for clinical specialty training. For example, the American Board of Physical Therapy Specialties has graduated more than 24,000 clinical specialists who completed advanced training in nine specialty areas of cardiovascular and pulmonary, clinical electrophysiology, geriatrics, neurology, oncology, orthopedics, pediatrics, sports, and women’s health. The Board of Pharmacy Specialties, an autonomous arm of the American Pharmacists Association, has certified more than 46,000 pharmacists across 12 specialties in pharmacy education – ambulatory care, cardiology, critical care, geriatrics, infectious diseases, nuclear, nutrition support, oncology, pediatric, pharmacotherapy, psychiatric, and compounded sterile preparations. The American Board of Certification in Medical Optometry has, as of January 2020, graduated over 400 licensed optometrists with an entry-level OD degree as specialists in medical optometry for diagnosis, and treatment of primary and secondary disorders of the eye, adnexa, and visual tracts.
Bilateral integration sequencing (BIS)
Published in Jill Christmas, Rosaline Van de Weyer, Hands on Dyspraxia: Developmental Coordination Disorder, 2019
Jill Christmas, Rosaline Van de Weyer
Bilateral integration challenges are likely to affect the child’s functional eye skills. While many children may have had a successful optician’s test, the functional movements of their eyes may not have been tested. The advice of an optometrist should be sought as this can make a considerable difference to the child’s function in school. See BABO in the ‘Professional organisations’ section at the end of this book.
Optometric practices and attitudes in keratoconus patient management in Latin America
Published in Clinical and Experimental Optometry, 2023
Sabrina Braga Vieira, Doris Rivadeneira-Bueno, Sara Ortiz-Toquero, Raul Martin
Optometrists are primary health care specialists trained to examine the eyes to detect defects in vision, signs of injury, ocular diseases or abnormality and problems with general health, as highlighted by the College of Optometrists in the UK.1 Furthermore, optometrists play a paramount role in the early diagnosis and management of keratoconus2,3; however, little is known about the reality of the optometric management of these patients in Latin America, where optometric training and practice show substantial differences between countries. Few reports have analysed the patterns of practice and referral criteria of optometrists in Europe4,5 or Australia.6 Moreover, evidence on the attitudes of optometrists involved in the management of keratoconus patients in Latin American countries has not been reported.
Vision Beyond Vision: Lessons Learned from Amblyopia
Published in Journal of Binocular Vision and Ocular Motility, 2023
To evaluate the cost-effectiveness of the in-school vision screening program in our jurisdiction, we conducted a cost-utility analysis using a hypothetical cohort of 25,000 children living in Toronto, Canada.70 Three strategies were compared: (1) current standard i.e., vision testing annually from age 3 to 18 years by pediatricians as part of well-child visits, as recommended by the Canadian Paediatric Society71 (which has similar guidelines as the American Academy of Pediatrics);72 (2) current standard plus optometric examination once between 2 to 5 years of age, and annually thereafter until 18 years, as recommended by national optometry professional associations (“current standard plus optometric exams”);73 and (3) current standard plus vision screening by a public health unit in kindergartens of elementary schools at age 5 years (“current standard plus in-school screening”). We found that the two alternative strategies (i.e., “current standard plus optometric exams” and “current standard plus in-school screening”) were not more cost-effective than the current standard. This finding is primarily driven by a great deal of uncertainty in the modeling such that the incremental-cost effectiveness of all three strategies overlapped considerably. In addition, at the population level, because most children (≥94%) do not have amblyopia, our results indicated that it is difficult to justify the cost of introducing a universal program over the current standard.
Practice patterns in the management of amblyopia among optometrists in Ghana
Published in Strabismus, 2022
Hubert Osei Acheampong, David Ben Kumah, Emmanuel Kofi Addo, Akosua Kesewah Asare, Eldad Agyei-Manu, Abubakar Sadik Mohammed, Benjamin Baah-Konadu, Isaiah Osei Duah Junior, Prince Mintah, Samson Darrah, Kwadwo Owusu Akuffo
In Ghana, the eye care cadre comprises the optometrists, ophthalmologists, ophthalmic nurses, and opticians. These professionals play significant roles in the management of amblyopia among pediatrics and adults. Among the eye care cadres in Ghana, the optometrist (primary eye care professional) remains the first contact for many eye-related conditions such as amblyopia. Optometrists provide comprehensive primary eye and vision care, including dispensing and refraction, diagnosis, management, and rehabilitation of the conditions of the visual system. Furthermore, optometry education in Ghana provides the optometrist with adequate skills (especially identifying different causes of amblyopia and institute required treatment) to manage various visual disorders including amblyopia. Management of amblyopia is a critical health issue as the risk of blindness of the amblyopic patient is higher than in the general population.15 However, differences in management approach, the unavailability of required instruments and the absence of standardized management protocol could significantly impact the outcome of amblyopia management in Ghana.