Vision impairment, blindness affects 66% of nursing home residents

Approximately 66% of residents in nursing homes have evidence of vision impairment and blindness, according to a study that highlighted the importance of comprehensive eye exams in older adults living in nursing homes.

Researchers conducted a cross-sectional analysis of the records of 7753 residents at nursing homes throughout North Carolina who were ≥65 years of age at the time of the initial patient visit.

Vision impairment was defined as best-corrected visual acuity between 20/40 and 20/200 and blindness as best-corrected visual acuity worse than 20/200.

Of the initial eye examination records included, 34% of the residents had normal vision, 43% had vision impairment, and 23% were blind.

Residents with age-related eye diseases had a higher prevalence of vision impairment and blindness, ranging from 63% to 76% and from 23% to 53%, respectively.

The researchers noted that correction of refractive error reduced vision impairment or blindness.

Reference
Monaco W, Qureshi R, Arif A, et al. Risk Factors for Vision Loss among Nursing Home Residents: A Cross-Sectional Analysis. J Am Med Dir Assoc. 2022;S1525-8610(22)00828-3. doi: 10.1016/j.jamda.2022.10.018. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 36442539.