Clinical presentations and outcomes of digoxin intoxicated patients

Abstract

Background: A recent report from Holmes suggested that the optimal screening age should be around five years old. The preschool vision screening is essential and should be included in the vision screening program in Thailand. The objective of this study was to assess the agreement of the interpretation of preschool visual acuity among doctor screeners and a teacher screener. Methods: The study was performed between August and October 2011. Preschool children aged between 36 and 72 months old from 3 Child Care Centres (CCC) were enrolled. All participants were tested for visual acuity (VA) by a combination of the following screeners: a third-year resident, a teacher from one of the CCCs who has been trained in VA measurement, and two ophthalmologists each with over 10 years’ experience. The VA measurement was carried out in pairs as follows: an ophthalmologist with the resident, an ophthalmologist with the teacher and the resident with the teacher. Results: Two hundred and sixty-four eyes (132 patients) met the criteria. The mean age of the preschool children was 43.71±4.54 months (range, 51-36 months). The agreement rates among the three pairs that carried out VA screening were excellent (k=0.81), moderate (k=0.63) and good (k=0.75) respectively. Conclusion: A teacher trained in VA measurement reliably measured VA in preschool children when compared to ophthalmologists.