Effect of Presbyopic Correction on Vision-Related Quality of Life among Public Secondary School Teachers in Lokoja, Nigeria

Purpose: To determine the effect of presbyopic correction on vision-related quality of life among public secondary school teachers in Lokoja, Nigeria. Methods: This was a quasi-experimental study in which 329 public secondary school teachers aged 35 years and above were recruited. All teachers underwent both distance and near visual acuity (VA) assessments; those with VA worse than 6/18 had refraction. Teachers with uncorrected presbyopia and those with inappropriate spectacles were given free near-vision spectacles, and their vision-related quality of life was reassessed two months later. Statistical analysis was performed using IBM-SPSS version 22. Paired T-test was used to determine if there was a difference between the pre- and posttreatment vision-related quality of life scores. Results: The mean age of the recruited teachers was 45.9 ± 6.49 years, with a female-to-male ratio of 3.2:1. The prevalence of presbyopia was 71.1%. The mean age of presbyopes was 48.1 ± 5.61 years. Only 47.4% of the presbyopic teachers had an appropriate presbyopic correction. The mean differences between the pre- and posttreatment visual function scores, as well as those for the vision-related quality of life scores, were statistically significant. The differences across the various age categories were also statistically significant. Conclusion: Presbyopia impacted negatively on the visual function and the vision related quality of life of the teachers. Presbyopic correction improved their visual function and vision-related quality of life scores remarkably. There is an urgent need to improve optometric care in under-served settings like Nigeria.