ENVIRONMENTAL DETERMINANTS AND CATARACT VULNERABILITY PROFILE AMONG RICE FARMERS IN WEST NIAS REGENCY
Keywords:
cataract, environmental determinants, rice farmers, ultraviolet radiation, risk mitigationAbstract
Background: As a largely preventable cause of blindness, cataract places rice farmers in equatorial tropical settings among the populations most at risk, given the substantial cumulative ultraviolet exposure they sustain over their working lives. Objective: This study set out to characterise the environmental, behavioural, and metabolic determinant profile alongside the ocular health status of rice farmers in West Nias Regency, providing an empirical basis for developing a cataract risk-mitigation model. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional design was applied to 30 purposively selected rice farmers in West Nias Regency. Information on demographic characteristics, work patterns, ocular complaints, smoking habits, comorbidities, and protective behaviour was gathered through structured interviews and examined descriptively. Results: Women made up the majority of respondents (63.3%), with a mean age of 47.6 years; 56.7% were aged 45 years or older. Most respondents worked 7–9 hours daily in open paddy fields, with a working tenure ranging from 20 to over 40 years. Ninety percent reported ocular complaints, none used any form of eye protection, and the majority displayed low risk perception. Smoking history was present in 26.7% of respondents, diabetes mellitus in 10%, and hypertension in 16.7%. Conclusions: Rice farmers in West Nias simultaneously bear a convergence of cataract risk determinants, pointing to an urgent need for a multilevel mitigation model that targets both risk perception and protective behaviour.
Keywords: cataract; environmental determinants; rice farmers; ultraviolet radiation; risk mitigation
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Copyright (c) 2026 Audrey Zebua, Ida Yustina, Nurmaini Nurmaini , Etti Sudaryati
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