Abstract
Abstract: :
Purpose: To examine the relationship between visual impairment (VI) and health care utilization, which is poorly understood. Methods:The National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) is a continuous multistage area probability survey of the US population. Randomly selected NHIS participants were questioned about visual impairment and selected eye diseases. Complete data were available on 120,735 adults age 18 years and older who participated in the 1986-1994 NHIS. The number of doctor's visits and hospitalizations during the 12-month period prior to the interview were analyzed with respect to visual impairment. Statistical methods included logistic multiple regression models adjusted for covariates and survey design. Results: A total of 334 participants reported bilateral blindness (0.3%); an additional 4,870 reported some VI and/or severe VI in at least one eye (4.0%). After adjustment for age, gender, race, education, marital status, and eye diseases (glaucoma, retinopathy, and cataract), participants with some VI or bilateral blindness were significantly more likely to have 4 or more doctor's visits relative to participants not reporting VI (odds ratios 1.80 [95% confidence interval=1.67-1.93] and 1.95 [1.49-2.55], respectively). Participants with some VI or bilateral blindness were also significantly more likely to report 1 or more hospitalizations in the previous 12 months relative to participants not reporting VI (1.59 [1.46-1.74] and 2.31 [1.75-3.06], respectively). Conclusion:Reported visual impairment is significantly associated with greater inpatient and outpatient health care utilization
Keywords: aging • visual impairment: neuro-ophthalmological dise • quality of life