Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39937756›Full record

ArticleBMJ global health2024

Sickle cell retinopathy among Ghanaian high school students: a school-based screening.

Jessica Sedhom, Akwasi Ahmed, Andrew DesLauriers, Eunice Agyeman Ahmed, Christabel Ameyaw Baah, Peter Ackah, Maame Temah Appiah-Berko, Marion Appiagyei, Obed Yeboah-Arhin, Sarthak Shah and 4 more

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Article in BMJ global health, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

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Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

14 authors.

Jessica SedhomTulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA jasedhom@gmail.com.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4101-4460
Akwasi AhmedOphthalmology, Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital, Kumasi, Ashanti, Ghana.
Andrew DesLauriersOphthalmology, Stanford University, Palo Alto, California, USA.
Eunice Agyeman AhmedHematology, Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital, Kumasi, Ashanti, Ghana.
Christabel Ameyaw BaahUniversity of California, Los Angeles, California, USA.
Peter AckahOphthalmology, Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital, Kumasi, Ashanti, Ghana.
Maame Temah Appiah-BerkoOphthalmology, Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital, Kumasi, Ashanti, Ghana.
Marion AppiagyeiOphthalmology, Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital, Kumasi, Ashanti, Ghana.
Obed Yeboah-ArhinOphthalmology, Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital, Kumasi, Ashanti, Ghana.
Sarthak ShahOphthalmology, Stanford University, Palo Alto, California, USA.
Suzann PershingOphthalmology, Stanford University, Palo Alto, California, USA.
Geoffrey C TabinOphthalmology, Stanford University, Palo Alto, California, USA.
Prithvi MruthyunjayaOphthalmology, Stanford University, Palo Alto, California, USA.
Arthur BrantOphthalmology, Stanford University, Palo Alto, California, USA.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

introductionSickle cell disease (SCD) remains a significant health concern, particularly in Ghana and Sub-Saharan African countries. School-based ocular screenings provide a unique opportunity for early detection of sickle cell retinopathy (SCR).

methodsStudents from five major schools in the Kumasi Metropolitan District of Ghana were included. Research assistants educated students on SCD and type 1 diabetes (T1DM) during school-wide assemblies, emphasising destigmatisation and vision health. Students completed questionnaires to self-report SCD or T1DM. Those who self-reported underwent in-depth interviews and dilated fundus exams (DFE).

resultsOf 17 987 total student population, 8168 students completed the survey (45.4% response rate) of which 2.4% of students were aware of their SCD status, while most 69.3% were unaware. No students reported having T1DM. 24 students identified as having SCD (14 haemoglobin SS and 10 HbSC) resulting in a prevalence of 0.07% and 0.05% for SS and SC, respectively. Among the SCD cohort, four had Proliferative SCR (PSCR). Of the students with stage 3 PSCR, one was 15 years old with SS genotype and bilateral stage 3 PSCR; another was 18 years old with SC disease, unilateral stage 3 PSCR. Only one SCD patient (SS genotype) had a history of previous DFE. 20.8% of SCD students were aware of SCD ocular complications and 75% felt uncomfortable sharing their SCD status.

conclusionsWe conclude (1) an alarmingly low rate of self-reporting SCD (11× and 24× lower than expected for SS and SC-SCD, respectively), (2) low health literacy given 0% of students with SC-SCD had previously undergone a DFE and (3) 17% of students had PSCR and 8% of students had treatment-warranted PSCR (stage 3). These findings highlight the need for universal SCD screening, improved health education on the ocular complications of SCD and routine school-based vision screenings for patients with SCD.

Indexed as

Anemia, Sickle CellMass ScreeningRetinal DiseasesSchool Health ServicesStudentsAdolescentDiabetes Mellitus, Type 1FemaleGhanaHumansMalePrevalenceSchoolsSurveys and QuestionnairesBlood disordersEye diseasesGlobal HealthHealth education and promotionScreening

Identifiers

PMID39937756
PMCPMC11664335

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.