A review of cataract in stable and conflict zones in Africa

Aim. To review and explore cataract prevalence in stable and unstable countries by examining published and unpublished ocular literature about Africa from 1980 onwards.^ Methods. Searches using OVID, Proquest Dissertations, WHO, and Ebsco Host were done. The review was restricted to articles utilizing WHO definitions of blindness and low vision. Random cluster sampling technique with a minimum sample size of 1,500, and reporting causes of blindness categorized by age and gender were inclusion considerations in the selected articles. ^ Results. Blindness and low vision increased with conflict. Women and the elderly were more likely to have vision impairing cataract. Cataract was the leading cause of blindness; the prevalence range was 22%–81% for the reviewed nations.^ Conclusion. Instability was connected to higher cataract prevalence and worse visual outcome across all characteristics examined except cataract surgical rates. ^

The construction of aging and health in older African American women

Persistence of racial and ethnic health disparities and governmental policies based on outdated ideas of aging call for inclusive approaches to the study of elder African Americans. The lived experiences of aging among urban, poor African American women, who comprise a vulnerable population, are not well known, as most studies focus on mainstream populations. Gerontological studies have tended to employ methods that collapse contextual information for ease of analysis, thus failing to capture nuanced information critically relevant to health of marginalized groups. Few researchers have been successful highlighting the importance of local knowledge, resilience, and resources for health by using participatory methods with older Black women. This study utilizes participatory principles to gather discursive data from nine older African American women, engaged in three generational cohorts: those born around World War II, women born after the great depression, and those born before the great depression. Videotaped and transcribed conversations of cohorts were analyzed in search of contextual factors that influence their experience of aging and health. As women responded to general themes that provoked their talk about their lives, they helped answer the study's questions: How do older African American women make sense of their aging experience? What are some of the important social and cultural influences that shape the construction of aging and health by these women? Are generational discourse groups an effective tool for exploring changes in the experiences of aging? A key finding demonstrated rich heterogeneity of experiences with strong generational influences on the construction of aging and health. The participants' moral orders comprised of traditional values of family, reinforced by personal experiences and the church, have guided their lives through oppression and stress but appear to be failing younger women who have greater exposure to new environmental pressures. Limited time and the size of the study were weaknesses although the women's interest in the study and their participation were gratifying. The participants served to highlight the importance of recognizing generational and other contextual factors in formation of ideas of aging and likelihood of additional challenges to the experience of old age among older, poorer, African Americans. ^