Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 27, 2026
An Ex Vivo Tissue Culture Model for Fibrovascular Complications in Proliferative Diabetic Retinopathy
Published on: January 25, 2019
Retinal diseases in a tertiary hospital: the need for establishment of a vitreo-retinal care unit
Oluwatoyin Helen Onakpoya1, Samuel Oluremi Olateju, Iyiade Adeseye Ajayi
1Ophthalmology Unit, Department of Surgery, Obafemi Awolowo, University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria. uvtoyin2@yahoo.co.uk
Aim:
To evaluate the need for vitreo-retinal care for suburban and rural communities of southwestern Nigeria.
Methodology:
A retrospective review of patients with posterior segment diseases attending the general ophthalmology clinics of Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospital's complex, Ile Ife, southwestern Nigeria, between January 2001 and December 2006 was conducted. The age, sex and diagnosis were analyzed and needs assessment conducted.
Results:
Three-thousand, one-hundred-thirty-one new cases were reviewed of which 407(13%) patients presented with retinal diseases. Their mean age was 46.3 +/- 21.4 years, mode 60 years and male:female ratio 1.3:1 (P=0.05). Macula diseases (35.6%), hypertensive retinopathy (12%), retinochoroiditis (11.5%) and diabetic retinopathy (9.6%) were the predominant retinal diseases. Age-related macular degeneration was the most frequent of the macular diseases (38.6%), with a female preponderance (p=0.06). It is estimated that fundus photography +/- fluorescein will be beneficial in 89.4%, laser photocoagulation in 36.4% and vitreo-retinal surgical procedure in 16.4%.
Conclusion:
Posterior segment diseases are not uncommon in rural communities of southwestern Nigeria. Facilities for fundus angiography, laser photocoagulation and a vitreoretinal surgical unit in trained hands will improve the capacity for specific diagnosis and appropriate management of vitreo-retinal diseases in these communities.
