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Five‐year outcome of correctable visual impairment: the Blue MountainsEye Study
Author(s) -
Foran Suriya,
Rose Kathryn,
Wang JieJin,
Thiagalingam Sureka,
Mitchell Paul
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
clinical and experimental ophthalmology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.3
H-Index - 74
eISSN - 1442-9071
pISSN - 1442-6404
DOI - 10.1046/j.1442-9071.2002.00511.x
Subject(s) - medicine , visual impairment , visual acuity , subjective refraction , refraction , optometry , ophthalmology , surgery , refractive error , physics , psychiatry , optics
This report aims to describe the outcome and socio‐economic characteristicsof older persons attending the Blue Mountains Eye Study (BMES) withpersistent correctable visual impairment (VI). The BMESI examined 3654 persons aged 49+ during 1992−1994and re‐examined 2335 survivors during 1997−1999 (BMES II).Visual acuity was measured before and after standardized refraction.Participants had correctable VI if their better eye was visuallyimpaired <6/12 before refraction (with distanceglasses if worn) and was unimpaired after refraction. In BMES I,274 persons (7.5%) had correctable VI, of whom 127 returnedto BMES II. Of this group of 127, 34 had persistent correctableVI and 74 were no longer impaired. Fewer persons with correctableVI returned and more died prior to BMES II, compared to personswith no or non‐correctable VI. This study showed that persistentcorrectable impairment was more frequent with increasing age, amongwomen, in those living alone, using community support services,or with a history of heart disease.