Quality of life and visual impairment from cataract in Satkhira district, Bangladesh.
OBJECTIVE
To evaluate a vision-related quality of life (QOL) scale (World Health Organization Prevention of Blindness and Deafness Visual Function 20-WHO/PBD VF20) and explore the impact of cataract visual impairment on vision- and health-related QOL in people >or=50 years from Satkhira district, Bangladesh.


METHODS
217 cases visually impaired from cataract and 280 controls with normal vision were interviewed about vision-related QOL (WHO/PBD VF20), generic health-related QOL (EuroQol generic health instrument, EQ-5D) and socio-demographic information. The validity and reliability of the WHO/PBD VF20 were evaluated using standard psychometric tests and criteria.


RESULTS
Evidence for validity and reliability of the WHO/PBD VF20 was found. Worsening general functioning, psychosocial and overall eyesight scores were associated with increased visual loss (p for trend<0.001). Cases were more likely to report problems with each EQ-5D descriptive domain and had poorer self-rated health than controls with normal vision (p<0.001).


CONCLUSIONS
Demonstration of the validity and reliability of the WHO/PBD VF20 in this population supports its suitability as a tool for assessing vision-related QOL in low-income settings. The poorer health-related QOL in cases compared with controls suggests an impact of cataract visual impairment on perceived health and well-being, beyond vision-specific experience.
Polack
S
S
London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, Keppel Street, London WC1E 7HT, UK. sarah.polack@lshtm.ac.uk
Kuper
H
H
Wadud
Z
Z
Fletcher
A
A
Foster
A
A
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001459:Bangladesh; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002386:Cataract / Q000150:complications* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology; D003906:Developing Countries; D004812:Epidemiologic Methods; D005260:Female; D006305:Health Status Indicators; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011594:Psychometrics; D011788:Quality of Life; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D014786:Vision Disorders / Q000209:etiology* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology; D014792:Visual Acuity