01744nas a2200301   4500000000100000008004100001260001300042653001000055653000900065653002200074653003000096653001100126653001100137653001000148653001200158653000900170653001600179653002100195653003000216100001700246700001500263700001200278245010000290300001000390490000700400520102100407022001401428       1991                            d  c1991 Sep10aAdult10aAged10aAged, 80 and over10aEye Infections, Bacterial10aFemale10aHumans10aKorea10aleprosy10aMale10aMiddle Aged10aVision Disorders10aWorld Health Organization1 aCourtright P1 aLewallen S1 aLee H S00aComparison of the old and new W.H.O. leprosy disability grading scheme for ocular disabilities.  a295-80 v153 a<p>We compared the old (1970) and new (1988) World Health Organization schemes for classifying the ocular disabilities in leprosy patients. 509 leprosy patients from eight resettlement villages in central South Korea were examined and graded by eye according to both of the schemes. A more liberal definition of severely disabled in 1988 resulted in a 119% increase in eyes graded as severely disabled in this population. 59 eyes were graded as severely disabled by the old scheme and 129 eyes were so graded according to the new scheme. Keratitis, one of three measures of moderate disability in the old scheme, was replaced by corneal anaesthesia in the new scheme, but this change did not make a substantial difference in the number of patients in the moderately impaired category. In the absence of longitudinal studies documenting the significance of keratitis, it is unclear whether the change in an improvement. The new disability scheme improved upon the old by removing the criteria for mild impairment.</p>  a0165-5701