Vision Screening in Adults Across the Life Span

Abstract

Objectives The goal of this study was to determine if adults across the life span differ in responses to quick vision screening and how those responses relate to their use of specialized eye care. Methods Subjects were 363 community-dwelling, ambulatory adults, aged 21 to 95, tested while they wore their corrective lenses, during routine visits to a tertiary care facility. No subjects had known neurological impairments, age-related macular degeneration or other significant eye disease. A wall-mounted ETDRS chart was used. Results Older adults, aged 58+ had significantly worse scores than younger adults. Scores did not differ between subjects who had been tested within or prior to the last 10 months. Older subjects had had their vision tested significantly more recently than younger subjects. Discussion Seeking eye care, per se, does not indicate the quality of the patient’s vision. Patients may be unaware of how well or poorly they see with their prescription lenses. Conclusion Vision screening is quick, inexpensive, easily performed by ancillary staff, and may provide the physician with useful additional information for treatment planning.

Physiological changes in vision during aging: perceptions of older adults and healthcare providers

“…(12,13) Other words indicated that the providers' concern should not only be with identifying the problem and concluding a diagnosis, with it also being necessary to consider the complications of visual decline as alterations in the quality of life and social aspects. (14) In the focus group cloud words such as bus, fall, night, glare, feel and walk, related to daily difficulties experienced by the older adults as a result of impaired vision, were also identified. In the literature, these words are cited by older adults with senile cataract, who need a greater amount of light to see better, especially at night, in addition to denoting decreased acuity, blurring, distortion, and loss of brightness and color.…”