Race and ethnicity inconsistently reported in ophthalmology literature

More standardized reporting of ethnic and racial demographic data is needed in ophthalmology literature, according to a report in JAMA Ophthalmology

The researchers found that although background demographic information is routinely collected, race and ethnicity is rarely included and when it is, how it is determined is not typically provided in ophthalmology literature.

In this cross-sectional study, of 547 articles published between January 2019 and December 2019 in the American Journal of Ophthalmology, JAMA Ophthalmology, and Ophthalmology, 484 included background demographic information, with 72 categorizing it as race, 51 as ethnicity, 56 as race/ethnicity, 21 as race and ethnicity, 12 as descent, 12 as population, and 5 as ancestry; in 21 articles it was not defined.

How background demographic information was determined was only described in 30 studies, with self-report being the most frequent method. A total of 78 races and/or ethnicities were defined.

Reference

Moore DB. Reporting of Race and Ethnicity in the Ophthalmology Literature in 2019. JAMA Ophthalmol. Published online June 18, 2020. doi:10.1001/jamaophthalmol.2020.2107