Causes and Prevalence of Visual Impairment Among Adults in the UnitedStates

Abstract

The Eye Diseases Prevalence Research Group* Objectives: To estimate the cause-specific prevalence and distribution of blindness and low vision in the United States by age, race/ethnicity, and gender, and to estimate the change in these prevalence figures over the next 20 years. Methods: Summary prevalence estimates of blindness (both according to the US definition of Յ6/60 [Յ20/200] best-corrected visual acuity in the better-seeing eye and the World Health Organization standard of Ͻ6/120 [Ͻ20/ 400]) and low vision (Ͻ6/12 [Ͻ20/40] best-corrected vision in the better-seeing eye) were prepared separately for black, Hispanic, and white persons in 5-year age intervals starting at 40 years. The estimated prevalences were based on recent population-based studies in the United States, Australia, and Europe. These estimates were applied to 2000 US Census data, and to projected US population figures for 2020, to estimate the number of Americans with visual impairment. Cause-specific prevalences of blindness and low vision were also estimated for the different racial/ethnic groups. Results: Based on demographics from the 2000 US Census, an estimated 937000 (0.78%) Americans older than 40 years were blind (US definition). An additional 2.4 million Americans (1.98%) had low vision. The leading cause of blindness among white persons was age-related macular degeneration (54.4% of the cases), while among black persons, cataract and glaucoma accounted for more than 60% of blindness. Cataract was the leading cause of low vision, responsible for approximately 50% of bilateral vision worse than 6/12 (20/40) among white, black, and Hispanic persons. The number of blind persons in the US is projected to increase by 70% to 1.6 million by 2020, with a similar rise projected for low vision. Conclusions: Blindness or low vision affects approximately 1 in 28 Americans older than 40 years. The specific causes of visual impairment, and especially blindness, vary greatly by race/ethnicity. The prevalence of visual disabilities will increase markedly during the next 20 years, owing largely to the aging of the US population.

The Prevalence of Visual Impairment in Older Adults in Mainland China: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

“…Another meta-analysis estimated the blindness prevalence of 0.78% and low vision of 1.98% in American adults aged 40 years and older [22]. The results of the present meta-analysis in mainland China are comparable to those in Latin America, and higher than those in Americans, and reflect the various situations of eye care services worldwide.…”

“…Finally, diagnostic criteria for the various causes of blindness and low vision also differed among studies. These results are based on BCVA and do not reflect the burden of low vision and blindness caused by uncorrected refractive error, an important cause of visual impairment in developed regions [19]. Treating undercorrection of refractive error might also be the easiest and most efficient method to improve vision in mainland China [20].…”

“…Developing countries, such as China, represent an area with average availability of eye care services. Developed countries, such as the US, Finland and Singapore, represent a situation with widely available eye care services [22,25,26]. …”

Aqueous Interleukin-6 (IL-6) Level Is a Marker for Treatment Resistance to Bevacizumab in Age-Related Macular Degeneration —Aqueous Cytokines after Bevacizumab

“…Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the leading cause of irreversible blindness among patients over the age of 55 years in the western world [1,2]. Exudative AMD, a less common form, is characterized by the formation of a choroidal neovascular membrane that emanates from the choriocapillaris through a defective Bruch's membrane [3].…”

Increased Visual Acuity Will Not Necessarily Equal an Increased Reading Ability in Patients with Subfoveal Neovascular Macular Degeneration

“…It is the leading cause of irreversible vision loss in the developed world among people over 50 years of age [1,2]. The age-related changes that stimulate the growth of choroidal neovascularizations (CNV) are not yet completely understood.…”