[Prevalence of blindness among adults aged 50 years or above in Shunyi county of Beijing].
OBJECTIVE
To estimate the prevalence of blindness among older adults aged >or= 50 years in Shunyi county of Beijing, China.


METHODS
Cluster sampling was used in randomly selecting individuals aged >or= 50 years in 28 villages in Shunyi county in fall, 1996. The survey was preceded by a pilot study where operational methods were refined and quality assurance evaluation was carried out.


RESULTS
5,555 individuals were enumerated. The response rate was 91.5%. In this population, the prevalence of blindness was 1.7% defined as pinhole visual acuity < 0.05 in both eyes; or 2.8% were blind, defined as presenting visual acuity < 6/60 in both eyes. Blindness was associated with older age and female gender. The principal cause of blindness in eyes was cataract.


CONCLUSIONS
The prevalence of blindness was decreased 35.8% after ten year active eye-care program in the survey area. However, cataract blindness continues as a significant problem among elderly, especially females, in this population sample of rural area.
Zhao
J
J
Department of Ophthalmology, Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Peking Union Medical College, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing 100730.
Jia
L
L
Sui
R
R
Zhang
C
C
Xiang
L
L
Zhang
H
H
Sun
G
G
Song
X
X
Mao
J
J
D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001766:Blindness / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology; D002386:Cataract / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D016000:Cluster Analysis; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010865:Pilot Projects; D015995:Prevalence; D012424:Rural Population; D012737:Sex Factors