Abstract
Purpose:
To evaluate the relationship of vision-specific quality of life as measured by NEI-VFQ 25 on scales of depression, suicidal ideation and life satisfaction in older patients.
Methods:
We report data on 100 persons who participated in a telephone interview to determine the relationship of prosocial behaviors, e.g., volunteering or giving help, and help received on depression and suicidal ideation in the elderly. The specific depression measures which we employed were the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SLS), the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale Revised (CESDSR), the Reasons for Living Scale (RLS) and the Modified Scale for Suicidal Ideation (MSSI). Patients were aged 60 years or more (mean: 73.48 years; range 60-94) and passed standard cognitive tests to rule out dementia. 55 were female and 45 were male. All participants were recruited from the WVU Eye Institute for the study. Exclusion criteria for the study did not include visual function. Patients ranged from normal vision to severe visual impairment. A chart review determined the vision within one month of the telephone interview. Using correlation analyses and stepwise regression, we determined which of the NEI-VFQ subscales predicted depression and/or suicidal ideation in our sample.
Results:
Stepwise regression indicated a significant relationship of NEI-VFQ subscales to SLS (p < . 0.0000006; Multiple R-squared = 0.59 with five subscales contributing), to CESDSR (p<0.00003; Multiple R-squared = 0.17 with three subscales contributing), and to MSSI (p < 0.03; Multiple R-squared = 0.07 with with three subscales contributing) but not to RFL (p<0.22904; Multiple R-squared = 0. .0147). Six of 100 patients reported suicidal thoughts on the MSSI. Each of the 6 was contacted by a clinical psychologist for further evaluation. None was judged to be clinically suicidal.
Conclusions:
Our data provide additional support for the importance of vision-specific quality of life in mental health.