title: Associations among visual acuity and vision- and health-related quality of life among patients in the multicenter uveitis steroid treatment trial.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the associations between visual acuity and self-reported visual function; visual acuity and health-related quality of life (QoL) metrics; a summary measure of self-reported visual function and health-related QoL; and individual domains of self-reported visual function and health-related QoL in patients with uveitis.
  
  
  METHODS
  Best-corrected visual acuity, vision-related functioning as assessed by the NEI VFQ-25, and health-related QoL as assessed by the SF-36 and EuroQoL EQ-5D questionnaires were obtained at enrollment in a clinical trial of uveitis treatments. Multivariate regression and Spearman correlations were used to evaluate associations between visual acuity, vision-related function, and health-related QoL.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Among the 255 patients, median visual acuity in the better-seeing eyes was 20/25, the vision-related function score indicated impairment (median, 60), and health-related QoL scores were within the normal population range. Better visual acuity was predictive of higher visual function scores (P ≤ 0.001), a higher SF-36 physical component score, and a higher EQ-5D health utility score (P < 0.001). The vision-specific function score was predictive of all general health-related QoL (P < 0.001). The correlations between visual function score and general quality of life measures were moderate (ρ = 0.29-0.52).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The vision-related function score correlated positively with visual acuity and moderately positively with general QoL measures. Cost-utility analyses relying on changes in generic healthy utility measures will be more likely to detect changes when there are clinically meaningful changes in vision-related function, rather than when there are only changes in visual acuity. (ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT00132691.).
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Policy and Management, The Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA. kfrick@jhsph.edu
authors.forename: Kevin D
authors.initials: KD
authors.lastname: Frick
authors.forename: Lea T
authors.initials: LT
authors.lastname: Drye
authors.forename: John H
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Kempen
authors.forename: James P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Dunn
authors.forename: Gary N
authors.initials: GN
authors.lastname: Holland
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Latkany
authors.forename: Narsing A
authors.initials: NA
authors.lastname: Rao
authors.forename: H Nida
authors.initials: HN
authors.lastname: Sen
authors.forename: Elizabeth A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Sugar
authors.forename: Jennifer E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Thorne
authors.forename: Robert C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Janet T
authors.initials: JT
authors.lastname: Holbrook
mesh_terms: D000284:Administration, Oral; D000328:Adult; D004343:Drug Implants; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D005260:Female; D005446:Fluocinolone Acetonide / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000031:analogs & derivatives*; D005938:Glucocorticoids / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D006304:Health Status; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011788:Quality of Life; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014605:Uveitis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000503:physiopathology; D014792:Visual Acuity
chemical_list: D004343:Drug Implants; D005938:Glucocorticoids; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents; D005446:Fluocinolone Acetonide; C035394:fluocinolone