Date of Award

1-1-2019

Language

English

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

College/School/Department

Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics

Program

Epidemiology

Content Description

1 online resource (ix, 143 pages) : illustrations.

Dissertation/Thesis Chair

Marilyn L Browne

Committee Members

Emily Leckman-Westin, Christopher Cunniff

Keywords

Cataract, Vision disorders in children, Vision in infants

Subject Categories

Epidemiology

Abstract

Infantile cataract is a lens opacity diagnosed by 12 months of age. It is a major cause of childhood blindness, with about 200,000 children worldwide being blind because of bilateral cataracts. Blindness has a negative impact on the quality of a child’s life and is associated with increased healthcare costs. While reduction/elimination of childhood blindness is a priority issue in public health, risk factors remain unknown for about two-thirds of infantile cataract cases. The primary aims of this dissertation were to (1) identify, evaluate, and summarize observational studies investigating non-genetic risk factors for infantile cataracts, (2) estimate birth prevalence and describe clinical characteristics of infants with cataracts, and (3) examine risk factors for infantile cataracts and their changes over time.

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