Post

New research · Ophthalmology
Vulnerable children and youth studies · 23h
StudyVulnerable children and youth studies · 2026

Visual acuity problems, access to care, and related academic performance among primary school students in Tanzania: a mixed methods study.

Michael Maizel, Arisa Shichijo, David Gitagno … Joy Noel Baumgartner
Read paper
OphthalmologyStudy

Reduced or impaired vision was associated with lower academic exam scores in Tanzanian students.

Visual acuity problems, access to care, and related academic performance among primary school students in Tanzania: a mixed methods study.

Michael Maizel … Joy Noel Baumgartner
Vulnerable children and youth studies · 2026
Background

Adolescents in lower-resource countries face a high burden of eye health problems.

Purpose

This study in Tanzania aimed to 1) estimate the prevalence of distance vision impairment among young adolescents, 2) describe academic performance by distance visual acuity status, and 3) examine facilitators and barriers to school-facilitated vision screenings and receiving eye care.

Methods

Participants (primary school students in Standard 7) in the intervention arm of the Vijana Tambua Afya, translated as "Youth Health Check," clinical trial (n=509) attended school-facilitated, clinic-based health check-ups that included distance vision screening (presenting acuity).

n = 509
Results

share of vision-impaired students who scored a C or lower on exams

Reduced/impaired visio
71.9%
Normal vision, C or lo
59.9%
More results

Data included adolescent surveys, medical record extraction, and Primary School Leaving Examination scores.

Overall, based on their worse eye, 6.9% of students had mildly- reduced vision and 4.3% had impaired vision on screening.

Less than 10% of students referred received follow-up care.

More results

Given the prevalence of visual impairment and its potential link to academic performance, governments should consider requiring school-based distance vision screenings.

“
Conclusion

Further research on screening implementation strategies and strengthening follow-up care is needed.

Read paper
0 comments

No comments yet. Be the first.

Related papers

LatestFoundational
Cross-sectional
44.1%
had too much homocysteine in the blood, a far larger share than in dry AMD or healthy eyes
Cohort Study
92.3%
most laser-treated eyes had a favorable eye-structure outcome
Cohort Study
56%
lost three or more lines on the eye-chart vision test
Cohort Study
50%
older patients were more likely to lose three or more lines of vision
Study
81%
trials where mask air leaks were detected blowing toward the eyes
Cohort Study
13.5%
Central retinal artery peak blood-flow speed was 13.5% lower in diabetic patients.
Study
379 +/- 156 microm
lower thickness in the central retina, checked with an eye scan
Case Report
9 of 10 eyes
eyes had better measured vision after treatment