Occupational diseases are a major global concern. Firefighting is associated with numerous health hazards.
However, the ocular problems that fire fighters endure are understudied. The purpose of this study was to determine
conjunctival disorders and other ocular morbidities prevalent among fire service personnel in the Kumasi Metropolis of
Ghana.A cross-sectional study was conducted in all five fire stations in the metropolis. A total of 150 personnel
aged 20 to 60 years were examined. Comprehensive ocular examination was carried out which included ocular and occupational
history, visual acuity measurement, ophthalmoscopy and visual field test by confrontation. The Statistical Package
for Social Scientists (SPSS) version 16.0 was used to analyze the data. The tool employed was descriptive statistics and
Chi- square test was used to find out significant differences between comparable categorical groups.
Out of the 150 personnel, 66.7% were male and 33.3% were female. The common ocular diseases were pinguecula
(21.3%), pterygium (15.3%), allergic conjunctivitis (8.0%), dry eyes (5.3%) and retinal abnormalities (4.0%). The
prevalence of ocular morbidities among the fire service personnel was 57.3%. Ocular diseases were found to be more
prevalent among males (40.7%) than females (16.7%). Conjunctival disorders significantly increased with longer duration
of service, but no significant association was found for non-conjuctival disorders.The study revealed a high ocular morbidity rate in the fire service personnel and underscores the need for
regular screening procedures and strategies to identify and manage non-blinding conditions that interferes with productivity
as well as potentially blinding conditions among personnel for timely intervention.
Some occupations are known to have serious harmful impact
on health. Over a million workers in the UK suffer a health
condition caused or worsened by their work. Occupational
diseases like firefighting have an immediate adverse effect on
work efficiency and productivity. Firefighting poses serious
risks including ocular hazardsto personnel. People involved in
occupations like firefighting, mining and construction sufferserious health conditions including cardiovascular disorders,
musculoskeletal disorders, sleep disorders and traumatic injuries
that could lead to sudden deaths Ocular morbidity can be referred to as the relative incidence
of eye diseases. It can also be defined as a disease state, disability
or poor health due to eye diseases. Fire service personnel
in performing their duties face danger from exposure to
smoke, dust, extremely high temperatures (1200°C to 1400°C)
and issues surrounding personal protective equipment, all of
which pose a threat to their ocular health. Occupation-related
eye conditions contribute to the global statistics of ocular
morbidity and the prevalence of such conditions among
workers especially firemen can affect work output or productivity.
Investigating the occupational association of eye
diseases will increase knowledge about how these diseases
are related to occupations and inform strategic planning and
implementation of policies to prevent or minimize the risks
and occurrence of these occupational disorders, which could
increase health and productivityFirefighting has become very important in the Kumasi Metropolis
of Ghana over the past few years. In 2015 alone, the
Kumasi Central Market suffered not less than five major fire
outbreaks, each of which required several hours of intense
firefighting by fire service personnel to be quenched. Within
the first week of January 2016, there had been three major
fire outbreaks in suburbs such as Aboabo and Adum, notwithstanding
minor household fires and burning accident vehicles
on the Kumasi-Accra highway. Personal communication with
firefighters and common observation has revealed that most
firefighters wear protective clothing but not goggles in their
line of work. This exposes their eyes to intense heat, smoke,
dust, exhaust particles and soapy liquids that comes with
regular firefighting.
This study was done to determine ocular
morbidities prevalent among fire service personnel in the
Kumasi Metropolis of Ghana. Data from this study will create
awareness among the fire personnel locally and globally and
also aid in policy formulation.A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among fire
service personnel in the Kumasi Metropolis, Ghana. There
were five fire stations with a total population of 294. The sample
size for the study was calculated to be 135 using Epi Info
version 7.1.5.2 (expected frequency 20.3%, 5% limits, 95%
confidence level). A total of 150 fire personnel were studied
for various ocular morbidities between 7th July and 8th
August, 2014. In each of the stations, the subjects were registered with a
structured questionnaire administered by one of the researchers
in the local (Twi) language. The questionnaire was
used to obtain data on the personal, medical and occupational
information of the personnel. A battery of eye examinations
namely visual acuity measurement, external eye examination
and fundoscopy were carried out on all subjects using Snellen’s
chart (6metres), pentorch and ophthalmic loupe, and
Welch Allyn Direct Ophthalmoscope. Visual field test by confrontation
was also carried out for all participants. All examinations
findings were detailed on structured record forms and
cross-checked for completeness of data before each subject
was discharged. Diagnoses were made on the presence of a
condition in one or both eyes of a study subject.
