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ABSTRACT
The early years of a child's life are crucial for their development, and ocular health is a key concern. Parents play a crucial role in promoting early detection and resolution of eye disorders, which regular examinations from infancy can facilitate. Prioritizing eye care at a young age contributes to optimum visual development and good ocular health throughout a child's life. The study aimed to determine the awareness of parents on paediatric eye health, association of socio-demographic factors with eye education, barriers to children receiving eye care and the knowledge of parents of common childhood eye diseases/disorders. A cross-sectional questionnaire-based study was conducted in Egor local government Area of Edo state from January to March 2024. The questionnaire was filled by 342 parents who have children between the ages of 0-16 years to determine their awareness of paediatric eye health. The questionnaire consisted of four main sections: socio-demography of participants, parents’ awareness of children's eye exams, parents’ awareness of childhood eye treatments, sources of parents’ knowledge and sources of knowledge. 36.3% of responding parents had taken their child for an eye examination. 21.1% would take their child(ren) for an eye examination if they had difficulties in school, 40% cited cost as a barrier to taking their child for an eye exam. There was statistical significance in level of awareness between fathers and mothers in the use of eye glasses (p < 0.001) but not in the use of eye drops (p = 0.242), ointments (p = 0.334) and eye surgery (p = 0.067). Age of responding parents also has a significant effect on knowledge of eye health (p < 0.001) likewise in the level of education ( p < 0.001). In conclusion, more awareness should be spread about paediatric eye health amongst parents. Keywords: Paediatrics, parent, awareness, children, blindness, vision, refractive error, diseases, disorders.
