Assessment of Vision-Related Quality of Life in Patients with Neovascular Age-Related Macular Degeneration During COVID-19 Pandemic: Retrospective Study

Abstract

To evaluate vision-related quality of life (QoL) using National Eye Institute Visual Function Questionnaire-25 (NEI-VFQ-25) in neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD) patients during coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Material and Methods: nAMD patients whose intravitreal injection had to be postponed due to restrictions of COVID-19 lockdown between April and June 2020, NEI-VFQ-25 was administered last visit pre-COVID-19 and first visit during COVID-19. NEI-VFQ-25 scores, best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and central macular thickness (CMT) were compared between visits. Results: Fifty six patients with nAMD were participitated in the study. The composite score of NEI-VFQ-25 was statistically significantly lower at first visit during COVID-19 when compared with at last pre-COVID-19 (95% confidence interval, 2.33-4.24; p=0.000). Decrease in NEI-VFQ-25 composite score was moderately associated with an impairment in BCVA at first visit during COVID-19 and duration of treatment delay after adjusting for age, gender, BCVA at last visit pre COVID-19 and CMT (β coefficient=0.42 and 0.41 and p=0.016 and 0.015). Conclusion: Negative impacts of delayed treatment during COVID-19 pandemic were observed by decrease NEI-VFQ-25 composite scores in patients with nAMD observed on psychological well-being and ability of performing daily life activities that depend on visual function.