Key Takeaways
- Vision loss progressed over time in patients with geographic atrophy, with the proportion of patients having visual acuity worse than 20/100 increasing from 12.8% at diagnosis to 24.3% by year 2.
- Patients with subfoveal involvement experienced faster vision decline, reaching visual acuity worse than 20/40 in a median of 2.2 years versus 3.8 years for those without subfoveal involvement.
Geographic atrophy (GA) was associated with progressive vision loss, higher healthcare costs, and a potential increase in the risk of falls and fractures, according to a study from the American Academy of Ophthalmology IRIS Registry.
Researchers evaluated 63,616 patients aged 50 years or older who had valid visual acuity (VA) measurements before and after diagnosis. The proportion of patients with visual acuity below 20/100 increased from 12.8% at diagnosis to 24.3% by the second year.
The median time to reach visual acuity worse than 20/40 was 3 years. Patients with subfoveal involvement reached the visual acuity threshold of worse than 20/40 sooner than those without subfoveal involvement, with median times of 2.2 and 3.8 years, respectively.
A claims-linked analysis included 5,827 patients from a homogeneous cohort designed to control for other eye diseases and procedures that could affect vision or healthcare utilization. By year 2, visual impairment was associated with more than a 26% increase in total medical care costs.
Moderate to severe visual impairment was also suggestive of an increased risk of falls and fractures.
Reference
Borkar D, Arkin-Leydig K, Toth J, et al. Vision, Medical Cost, and Risk of Falls and Fractures in Geographic Atrophy: An American Academy of Ophthalmology IRIS Registry Analysis. J Vitreoretin Dis. 2026;24741264261448421. doi: 10.1177/24741264261448421. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 42239975; PMCID: PMC13226300.
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