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Alvin Munsamy

Prof.

Alvin Munsamy

Associate Professor

Telephone
031 260 7816

Email
Munsamya1@ukzn.ac.za

BIOSKETCH
Professor Munsamy is an associate professor from the discipline of Optometry where he is involved in training undergraduate students in the areas of ocular diseases and binocular vision. He also supervises masters and PhD students in the area of clinical optometry. He is currently an NRF-rated C2 scientist and the editor-in-chief of the journal African Vision and Eye Health. He identifies himself as a passionate educator of optometric clinicians.
RESEARCH INTERESTS
  • Binocular Vision
  • Ocular Disease
  • Clinical Optometry
  • Digital Eye strain
  • HIV (Ocular)
  • Glaucoma
    
LIST OF PUBLICATION
  1. Munsamy, A., Moodley, V., Naidoo, P., Mangwarara, T., Abdullah, R., Govender, D., & Dlamini, P. A frequency analysis of cone characteristics for the different stages of keratoconus. Afr Vision Eye Health. 2015 74(1)
  2. Mashige KP, Munsamy AJ. Diplopia, South African Family Practice. 2016: 58 (10)
  3. Munsamy AJ, Hamilton-Hoskins RS, Bero T. et al. The effect of acute ingestion of alcohol at 0.05% and 0.10%blood respiratory alcohol concentration on heterophoria. Afr Vision Eye Health. 2016;75(1), a342.
  4. Atowa, U., Munsamy, A., & Wajuihian, S. (2017). Prevalence and risk factors for myopia among schoolchildren in Aba, Nigeria. African Vision And Eye Health, 76(1), 5 pages.
  5. Munsamy, A. J., & Moodley, V. R. (2017). A correlation analysis of cone characteristics and central keratometric readings for the different stages of keratoconus. Indian Journal of Ophthalmology, 65(1), 7– 11.
  6. Munsamy AJ, Gopaul K, Perumaul K, et al. A comparative analysis of the postural and diurnal ocular perfusion pressure of young healthy individuals of different ethnicities. Afr Vision Eye Health. 2018; 77 (1),a427.
  7. Munsamy A, Bhanprakash B, Sirkhot A, Mlambo L, Dlamuka S, Mhlongo N, Naidoo R. A pre-test post-test assessment of non-invasive keratograph break up time and corneal epithelial thickness after vaping. Afri Health Sci. 2019; 19(4):2926-2933.
  8. Majola L, Munsamy AJ. A review of glycaemic changes on vision in phakic, aphakic and pseudophakic people with diabetes. Afr Vision Eye Health. 2020;79(1),
  9. Atowa UC, Wajuihian SO, Munsamy AJ. Associations between near work, outdoor activity, parental myopia and myopia among schoolchildren in Aba, Nigeria. Int J Ophthalmol.2020: 13 (2), 309-316
  10. Ojiabo SN, Munsamy AJ. A review of the treatment of anisometropic amblyopia in adults using dichoptic therapy. Afr Vision Eye Health. 2020;79(1)
  11. Munsamy AJ, Paruk H, Gopichunder B, Luggya A, Majola T, Khulu S. The effect of gaming on accommodative and vergence facilities after exposure to virtual reality head-mounted display. J Optom. (2020),13, 163-170.
  12. Munsamy AJ, Chetty V. Digital eye syndrome: COVID-19 lockdown side-effect? SAMJ (2020) online first.
  13. Munsamy AJ, Moodley AA, Brautaset RL. Recognising the threat of vision loss in people living with HIV on antiretroviral therapy without retinitis. Afr Vision Eye Health. 2020;79(1), a547.
  14. Chetty V, Munsamy A, Cobbing S, Van Staden D, Naidoo R. The emerging public health risk of extended electronic device use during the COVID-19 pandemic. S Afr J Sci. 2020;116 (7/8).
  15. Majola, Lindokuhle & Munsamy, Alvin. (2021). The Investigation of the Effect of Hyperglycemic Changes on Psychophysical Measurements of Visual Function in Pseudophakic People Living with Diabetes Mellitus. Clinical Optometry. 13. 191-199.
  16. Vawda, Naazia & Munsamy, Alvin. (2021). The Effect of Ocular Perfusion Pressure on Retinal Thickness in Young People with Presumed Systemic Hypotension. Vision. 5. 36. 10.
  17. Pillay R, Munsamy AJ. A review exploring convergence insufficiency in younger populations and e-devices in the digital era. Afr Vision Eye Health. 2021;80(1)
  18. Munsamy, A. and Paruk, H., 2021. A Study to Assess the Feasibility of Utilising Virtual Reality for the Treatment of Accommodative and Vergence Infacility. British and Irish Orthoptic Journal, 17(1), pp.127–133.
  19. Munsamy, Alvin Jeffrey; Moodley, Anandan Angamuthu; Brautaset, Rune Lysnes. The Integrity of Retinal Morphology in Non-immunocompromised People Living with HIV on Antiretroviral Therapy. Optometry and Vision Science. 98(10):1183-1195, October 2021.
  20. Diane van Staden, Alvin Munsamy. Integrated, people-centred eye care: Why South Africa needs to prioritise scaling up refractive services. S Afr Med J 2021;111(10):924-925.
  21. Vawda N, Munsamy AJ. A review of ocular perfusion pressure and retinal thickness: A case for the role of systemic hypotension in glaucoma. Afr Vision Eye Health. 2021;80(1), a630.
  22. Munsamy AJ, Brautaset RL, Moodley AA. The relationship between retinal structure and visual function in non-immuno-compromised people living with HIV without retinitis on antiretroviral therapy. Ophthalmic Physiol Opt 2022;00:1–17.
  23. Munsamy, A., Chetty, V., & Ramlall, S. (2022). Screen-based behaviour in children is more than meets the eye. South African Family Practice, 64(1), 4 pages.
  24. Van Staden, D., Chetty, V. & Munsamy, A.J. A protocol for a scoping review to map the assessment approaches in optometry education programmes globally. Syst Rev 11, 33 (2022).
  25. Munsamy AJ, Moodley M, Khan Z, et al. Evidence on the effects of digital blue light on the eye: A scoping review. Afr Vision Eye Health. 2022;81(1), a685.
  26. Munsamy, A. J., & Govender-Poonsamy, P. (2022). Myopia – a 21st-century pandemic leaving our children shortsighted? South African Medical Journal, 112(9), 740.
  27. Munsamy A.J., Naidoo S., Akoo T., Jumna S., Nair P., Zuma S., Blose S. A case study of digital eye strain in a university student population during the 2020 COVID-19 lockdown in South Africa: evidence of an emerging public health issue. Journal of Public Health in Africa. 2022;13.2103.
  28. Ojiabo SN, Munsamy AJ. The Effect of Home-Based Dichoptic Therapy on Young Adults with Non-Strabismic Anisometropic Amblyopia on Stereo Acuity. Clin Optom (Auckl). 2022;14:237-247.
  29. Abdul-Kabir Mohammed, Alvin J. Munsamy. Ophthalmic services utilisation and associated factors in the Ashanti region, Ghana. Ghana Med J 2023; 57(1): xxx-xxx
  30. Munsamy AJ, Brautaset RL, Moodley AA. The integrity of psychophysical visual function in non-immunocompromised PLHIV (NIPLHIV) without retinitis on antiretroviral therapy (ART). Afri Health Sci. 2023;23(1): 137-48.
  31. Abdul-Kabir Mohammed, Alvin J. Munsamy, Abdul-Sadik Ahmed. AN ASSESSMENT OF OPHTHALMIC SERVICES IN THE ASHANTI REGION, GHANA. Journal of Science and Technology, Vol. 41, No. 1 (2023), pp 82 – 100.
  32. Munsamy, AJ, Ngema, A,Bisetty, S, Lushaba, S, Mayaba,N, Mthiyane, B, Nyathi, N and Thabethe, A. 2023.Evidence of the Amplitude of Accommodation of School-Going Children in the 21stCentury. British and Irish Orthoptic Journal, 19(1),pp. 52–63. DOI:
  33. Putter, T., Munsamy, A., & van Staden, D. (2023). Are graduate optometrists in South Africa practice ready?. African Vision and Eye Health, 82(1), 9 pages. doi:https://doi.org/10.4102/aveh.v82i1.806
  34. Putter, T., van Staden, D., Munsamy A. Perceptions and experiences of employers and mentors of graduate optometrists’ practice readiness in South Africa.Afr J Health Professions Educ 2023;15(4):e1687. https://doi.org/10.7196/AJHPE.2023.v15i4.1687
  35. Elizabeth Mana Akpakli, Alvin Jeffrey Munsamy. Visual Impairment among Public School Children in the Biadan and Kato Circuits in the Berekum Municipality, Bono Region, Ghana. Journal of Advocacy, Research and Education. 2023. 10(2): 59-67 DOI: 10.13187/jare.2023.2.59.
  36. Mohammed A-K, Munsamy AJ. Utilisation pattern of ophthalmic services in Ashanti Region, Ghana. Afr J Prm Health Care Fam Med. 2024;16(1), a4326.https://doi.org/10.4102/phcfm.v16i1.4326
  37. Buthelezi LM, Munsamy AJ, Mashige KP. Inflammatory mechanisms contributing to retinal alterations in HIV infection and long-term ART. S Afr J HIV Med. 2024;25(1), a1548. https://doi.org/10.4102/ sajhivmed.v25i1.1548
  38. Naicker N, Munsamy AJ. Optometrists’ perspectives on speciality programme development in South Africa. Afr Vision Eye Health. 2024;83(1), a910. https://doi.org/10.4102/aveh.v83i1.910
  39. Munsamy AJ, Monthati L,Minenhle M, Zwelakhe M, Nokubongwa N, Mthobisi R. Vessel density, macula thickness and foveal avascular zone measurements in young African adults with moderate myopia: A pilot study. Ophthalmic Physiol Opt. 2024;00:1–11.
  40. Munsamy AJ, Oderinlo O. Artificial intelligence: An innovation shaping modern eye care. Afr Vision Eye Health. 2024;83(1), a996.
  41. Nelson-Ayifah D, Mashige KP, Munsamy AJ. Normative values for retinal parameters in a Ghanaian clinical population at risk for glaucoma. Afr Vision Eye Health. 2024;83(1), a951. https://doi.org/10.4102/aveh.v83i1.951
  42. Nelson-Ayifah, Doreen, Mashige, Khathutshelo P, Munsamy, Alvin J. A comparison of optic disc size and retinal thickness between a glaucomatous and nonglaucomatous African population. Optometry and Vision Science.2025; 102(7).
  43. Sarai DN, Munsamy AJ. Knowledge and attitudes toward myopia control strategies among teenagers in Lurambi Constituency, Kenya. Afr Vision Eye Health.2025;84(1), a1023.
  44. Akpakli EM, Munsamy AJ, Rampersad N. Assessment of pediatric eye care services in health facilities in the Ashanti region of Ghana. Afr J Prm Health Care Fam Med. 2025;17(1), a4972. https://doi.org/10.4102/phcfm.v17i1.
  45. Munsamy AJ. Invisible scholars: A case for formal acknowledgement of peer reviewers and journal editors. Afr Vision Eye Health. 2025;84(1), a1127.https://doi.org/10.4102/aveh.v84i1.1127
  46. Naicker, N., Munsamy, A. Pedagogical strategies for specialised coursework postgraduate programmes in optometry: a mixed methods study for South Africa. BMC Med Educ 25, 1478 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12909-025-07986-y
  47. Buthelezi, L.M., Munsamy, A.J. & Mashige, K.P. Proof-of-concept study on Bruch’s membrane opening minimum rim width (BMO-MRW) and optic nerve head morphology in people living with HIV. BMC Ophthalmol 25, 564 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12886-025-04349-5
  48. Akpakli EM, Munsamy AJ, Rampersad N. Parental Knowledge and Practices Towards Primary Eye Care Services among Children in the Ashanti Region of Ghana. Journal of Community Medicine and Primary Health Care (2025), Vol. 37(3):54-68.
  49. Munsamy, A., Buthelezi, L.M., Biyela, L.Z. et al. An Evaluation of the Retinal Nerve Fibre Layer and Ganglion Cell Layer Thickness in Low Myopes. Ophthalmic Physiol. Opt. (2026). https://doi.org/10.1007/s44402-026-00021-7
  50. Buthelezi LM, Munsamy AJ, Mashige KP. A Pilot Study of Retinal Vessel Calibre and Its Potential Link to Cardiovascular Risk in HIV. Clin Optom (Auckl). 2026 Feb 14;18:541786. doi: 10.2147/OPTO.S541786. PMID: 41717584; PMCID: PMC12915431.
  51. Nelson-Ayifah, D., Mashige, K. P., & Munsamy, A. J. (2026). A comparative study of anterior segment variables between glaucomatous and non-glaucomatous Ghanaians. Clinical and Experimental Optometry, 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1080/08164622.2025.2546004
  52. Sarai DN, Munsamy AJ. (2026) Magnitude Of Myopia And Factors Influencing The Uptake Of Myopia Control Strategies Among Teenagers In Lurambi Constituency, Kenya. Journal of Community Medicine and Primary Health Care. Vol 38(1): 28 –38. ://dx.doi.org/10.4314/jcmphc.v38i1.3
  53. van Staden DB, Munsamy AJ, Chetty V. The impact of the COVID‐19 lockdown on the learning experiences of optometry students at a South African university. (2026). African Journal of Health Professions Education, 18(1), e3485