Impact of bilateral visual impairment on health-related quality of life: the Blue Mountains Eye Study.
OBJECTIVE
To assess the impact of visual impairment on health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in an older population and compare it with the impact of major medical conditions.


METHODS
Participants of the second cross-sectional Blue Mountains Eye Study (BMES; n = 3509; mean age, 66.7 years; 57% female) were asked to complete the self-administered 36-item Short-Form health survey (SF-36), a comprehensive interview, and an eye examination. Visual impairment was defined as visual acuity less than 20/40 (better eye).


RESULTS
Of 3154 (89.9%) participants with complete data, 172 (5.5%) had visual impairment due to refractive errors (correctable visual impairment) and 66 (2.1%) due to eye conditions (noncorrectable visual impairment; 49 mild, 9 moderate, 8 severe). After adjustment for demographic and medical confounders, there was a trend toward lower SF-36 scores in participants with noncorrectable impairment than in those with correctable impairment (physical component score [PCS] Ptrend = 0.01 and mental component score [MCS] Ptrend = 0.02). Increasingly severe noncorrectable visual impairment was associated with significantly poorer SF-36 scores in all but two dimensions. The impact of noncorrectable visual impairment was comparable to that from major medical conditions (e.g., stroke) and had a greater impact on mental than physical domains (mean MCS = 46.2, PCS = 41). No significant differences in HRQOL were demonstrated between visual impairment cases caused by age-related maculopathy and cataract, after adjusting for severity of visual impairment.


CONCLUSIONS
Noncorrectable visual impairment was associated with reduced functional status and well-being, with a magnitude comparable to major medical conditions. These data have implications for disability weights such as those developed by the Global Burden of Disease study.
Chia
Ee-Munn
EM
Department of Ophthalmology, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.
Wang
Jie Jin
JJ
Rochtchina
Elena
E
Smith
Wayne
W
Cumming
Robert R
RR
Mitchell
Paul
P
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002386:Cataract / Q000150:complications; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D008268:Macular Degeneration / Q000150:complications; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009517:New South Wales / Q000453:epidemiology; D011788:Quality of Life; D012030:Refractive Errors / Q000150:complications; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014786:Vision Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology / Q000523:psychology*; D014792:Visual Acuity / Q000502:physiology; D019987:Persons with Visual Disabilities / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data