Strabismus Amblyopia in Young Cameroonian at their First Visit at Yaounde Hospital Centre-Essos

The management of strabismus in Cameroon is not well developed and the average age of first consultation is beyond the age amblyopia reversal. It is with the aim of improving strabismus management that we undertook this prospective and descriptive study which spanned 11 months. The objective was to describe amblyopia in patients with comitant strabismus at their first visit. Data collected included the age at the first visit, past history, refractive error, and the characteristics of strabismus, amblyopia and strabismus-associated factors. Forty patients were included amongst whom there were 21 females and 19 males. The mean age was 5.5 ± 4.6 years, with extremes of 3 months and 24 years. The hospital prevalence of amblyopia was 1.02%. Esotropia was the most common form of strabismus in 52.5 % of cases. In 37.5% of cases, the onset of strabismus was before the age of six months. Amblyopia was present in 63.7% of cases. It was classified as severe in 29.41% of cases, moderate in 21.57% of cases, and mild in 49.02% of cases. Head tilt was present in 27.5% of cases and nystagmus in 25% of cases. In conclusion, the prevalence of amblyopia is high in our milieu with a higher prevalence amongst esotropic patients. The management of strabismus relies on the wearing of the full cycloplegic correction and requires the full cooperation of the parents.