Visual impairment in children with multiple disabilities in schools for children with special needs in South India

To understand/assess ocular and functional vision impairment in children with multiple disabilities with a functional vision assessment battery in addition to standard ophthalmic examinations in an outreach setting.

Seven schools for children with special needs, 243 children in total, were screened for ocular disorders and functional vision impairment through school camps.

Among them, 37% had refractive errors needing spectacle correction. With standard ocular testing methods, the visual impairment was around 32%, but when functional vision was assessed, the functional vision impairment amounted to 70% in these children. The presence of functional vision impairment was found to be independent of the associated disability. Assessment of visual capacities such as visual closure, saccade pursuits, optic ataxia, and developmental milestones early on can help in suspecting the presence of CVI.

Children with multiple disabilities are more at risk of functional vision impairment, which significantly impairs their ability to function in daily life. A complete functional vision assessment becomes essential to plan early intervention for these children. The significant proportion of vision impairment and functional vision loss in our study indicates the need for coordinated structured programs to address vision-related problems in children with multiple disabilities.