[Assessment of visual disability among 5 year-olds in Mayotte. A prospective study of 2849 schoolchildren in 2000]

To gain first insight into the prevalence of visual disability among children in Mayotte, a comprehensive study was undertaken in 2000 to determine the prevalence of impaired visual acuity, color blindness, ocular malformation, and oculomotor disturbance in five-year olds, second-year nursery schoolchildren. After preliminary assessment at school, children with serious visual impairment were referred for further examination by an ophthalmologist. Data was used to assess the number of visually impaired children in comparison with epidemiological data from metropolitan France and other countries as well as to estimate health care requirements in terms of the number of visual disabilities to be treated, glasses to be prescribed and rehabilitative and support programs to be set up. This study was novel not only for Mayotte but also for France because of the homogeneity of the population in terms of both age and geography. Results showed that children in Mayotte presented the same spectrum of eye disease as children elsewhere in the world. The prevalence of serious visual impairment was generally the same among 5-year-olds living in Mayotte as among their counterparts living in metropolitan France and English-speaking countries. However refractive visual disability was three times lower than among children in higher age brackets in metropolitan France.