Introduction: Low vision has a significant global health problem that impacts the personal, economical, psychological, and social life of an individual. Each year around 684 000 individuals die from falls, 80% of these deaths occur are in low- and middle-income countries. The risk of falling significantly increases with visual impairment. This review aimed to determine the global pooled prevalence of fall and associated factors among individuals with low vision. Methods and materials: Systematic search of published studies done on PubMed, EMBASE, MEDLINE, Cochrane, Scopus, Web of Science CINAHL and, Google Scholar. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines were used to report the findings. Quality of studies was assessed using the modified Newcastle-Ottawa Scale (NOS). Meta-analysis was performed using a random-effects method using the STATA™ Version 14 software. Result: Thirty-five (35) studies from different regions involving 175,297 participants included in this meta-analysis. The overall pooled global prevalence fall among individual with low vision was17.7% (95% CI: 16.4–18.9) whereas the highest prevalence was 35.5%; (95% CI: 28.4–42.5) in Australia and the lowest was 19.7%; (95% CI: 7.6–31.8) seen in South America. Fear of falling (OR: 0.16(95%CI 0.09–0.30), and severity of visual impairment (OR: 0.27(95%CI (0.18–0.39) increases the odds of falling. Conclusion: As one cause of accidental death, the prevalence of falls among individuals with low vision is high. Fear of falling and severity of falling increases the odds of falling. Different stakeholders should give due attention and plan effective strategies to reduce the fall among this population.

Biofilms constitute a significant challenge in the therapy of infectious diseases, offering remarkable resistance to both pharmacological treatments and immunological elimination. This resilience is orchestrated through the regulation of extracellular polymeric molecules, metabolic dormancy, and quorum sensing, enabling biofilms to persist in both clinical and industrial environments. The resulting resistance exacerbates chronic infections and contributes to mounting economic burdens. This review examines the molecular and structural complexities that drive biofilm persistence and critically outlines the limitations of conventional diagnostic and therapeutic approaches. We emphasize advanced technologies such as super-resolution microscopy, microfluidics, and AI-driven modeling that are reshaping our understanding of biofilm dynamics and heterogeneity. Further, we highlight recent progress in biofilm-targeted therapies, including CRISPR-Cas-modified bacteriophages, quorum-sensing antagonists, enzyme-functionalized nanocarriers, and intelligent drug-delivery systems responsive to biofilm-specific cues. We also explore the utility of in vivo and ex vivo models that replicate clinical biofilm complexity and promote translational applicability. Finally, we discuss emerging interventions grounded in synthetic biology, such as engineered probiotic gene circuits and self-regulating microbial consortia, which offer innovative alternatives to conventional antimicrobials. Collectively, these interdisciplinary strategies mark a paradigm shift from reactive antibiotic therapy to precision-guided biofilm management. By integrating cutting-edge technologies with systems biology principles, this review proposes a comprehensive framework for disrupting biofilm architecture and redefining infection treatment in the post-antibiotic era.

Purpose: To determine the prevalence and clinical presentation of participants with glaucoma attending a public eye care facility in Nigeria. Method: Hospital based retrospective study of glaucoma participants aged 50 years and above seen over a 5-year period. Descriptive statistics summarized the demographic, clinical characteristics and treatment of the participants and determined the association of variables with gender and age. Prevalence of the glaucoma by type, and their 95% confidence intervals (CI) were also calculated. Result: Of the 5482 case files that were reviewed, 995 (18.15%, 95% Cl 17.15–19.19%) had glaucoma particularly primary open angle glaucoma (11.55%, 95%CI 10.73–12.42%) and were mostly females (564, 56.7%) aged 69 ± 12 years (range, 50–103 years). In contrast to other glaucoma types, the prevalence of primary angle closure glaucoma (3.68, 95%CI 3.22–4.22) increased by 15% over 5 years. The mean intraocular pressure ranged from 15–50 mmHg but higher in females than males (27.8 ± 6.1mmHg versus 26.6 ± 6.0 mmHg, P 0.05). On presentation, the glaucoma hemi field test (GHFT) was outside the normal limits in 45.5% and 54.5% of males and females, respectively. The type of visual field defect was associated with glaucoma type (P = 0.047). Arcuate scotoma was most common (35.5%) across glaucoma types, paracentral scotoma more common in Secondary glaucoma while Seidel scotoma was highest in NTG (19.3%). Beta-blocker was the mainstay of management (42.2%) but more likely to be prescribed to males while more females received carbonic anhydrase inhibitors. Conclusions: The high prevalence of glaucoma in older people remains a public health problem in Nigeria. The fact that about half of the participants presented with visual field defect suggests there is a need for public health messages to emphasize on early glaucoma screening, detection and management.

Background: Visual impairment (VI) is a public health problem that can affect an individual’s social wellbeing. The study aims to determine the distribution and causes of vision impairment (VI) and blindness among patients at Nigerian Army Eye Centre Lagos, Nigeria. Method: An institutional cross-sectional study was conducted, and a systematic random sampling technique was used to enrol study participants from their medical records. Information about their demography, presenting visual acuity (VA), best corrected visual acuity and cause of VI and blindness, were retrieved. Result: A total of five hundred (500) medical records of patients aged from 4 to 96 years, with a mean age of 54.07 ± 21.43 years, were considered for the study. Among the participants, more than half were males (51.2%) and ≥60 years (53.0%). A large (47.2%) proportion of the patients had moderate VI at the time of presentation, followed by blindness (22.0%). The major cause of blindness was cataract, while glaucoma and refractive error were the major causes of VI. Blindness and VI were significantly associated with the type of VI before and after the provision of intervention (p < 0.05) across different age groups (children, youths, adults, elderly) with an adjusted p < 0.003 after an intervention. Conclusions: Cataracts, glaucoma and uncorrected refractive error (URE) were the major causes of VI and blindness in Lagos State. VI was more prevalent in males than females; however, there was no significant difference between the two proportions. The prevalence of VI among age groups was more significant for those 60 years and above. Early screening for the detection and management of cataract, URE and glaucoma is highly advised to reduce the burden of VI.

The African Vision and Eye Health journal publishes original peer-reviewed papers of scientific and clinical research in optometry, ophthalmology, vision science and other related fields.

Background: The Covid-19 pandemic lockdown obligated higher education students to attend online courses, leading to prolonged exposure to digital displays. Excessive time on digital devices could be a risk factor for ocular problems, including symptomatic dry eye. There are limited evidences to show the magnitude of symptomatic dry eye disease and its associated factors during COVID-19 pandemic. This study aimed to fill this gap, among university students in Trinidad and Tobago. Methods: An institutional-based cross-sectional study was conducted among undergraduate students attending the University of West Indies, Saint Augustine Campus from October 2020 to April 2021. The standardized ocular surface disease index questionnaire, descriptive statics and binary logistic regression were used to assess the prevalence and associated factors of dry eye diseases. Variables with a p-value of less than 0.05 were considered to be statistically significant. Results: Four hundred (96.3%) participants completed the questionnaire. Among all, 64.8% were female and 50.5% were east Indians. About 48% were using visual display units for average of 10– 15 hours/day. The prevalence of symptomatic dry eye disease was 84.3% (95% CI = 80.8– 87.5%) with OSDI score ≥ 13. Lack of education about dry eye 2.69 (95% CI: 1.41– 5.13), use of the reading mode of computer 3.92 (95% CI: 1.57– 9.80), refractive error 3.20 (95% CI: 1.66– 6.20), previous systemic medications 2.80 (95% CI: 1.15– 6.81), and average hours of visual display unit use/day (p< 0.001) were significantly associated with symptomatic dry eye disease. Conclusion: Symptomatic dry eye disease was a prominent problem among students at the University of West Indies. Average of > 4 hours of visual display unit use/day, refractive error, positive history of systemic medication, lack of education about dry eye, and using computers in reading mode were associated factors.