Abstract
Purpose :
People with vision impairment report low levels of health-related quality of life and lower physical activity. Physical activity is associated with improved physical health, decreased symptoms of depression and anxiety and improved quality of life. This pilot study assessed balance confidence and health related quality of life of people with visual impairment who report participating in regular exercise.
Methods :
Subjects with self-reported visual impairment completed the International Physical Activity Questionnaires (IPAQ), Activities-specific Balance Confidence (ABC) Scale and SF-36 Health Surveys. The Mann-Whitney U test was utilized to measure differences between participants who participated in vigorous exercise compared to those who participated in moderate exercise.
Results :
Sixteen participants had an average age of 50 years old; 75% were female. Visual impairment was reported as reduced visual acuity worse than 20/70 (81%) and/or reduced visual field (87.5%). In the past 6 months 12.5% reported having a fall. All subjects participated in regular physical activity, with 10 subjects participating in vigorous exercise at least 3 days per week, and 6 subjects participating in moderate exercise, including walking, at least 3 days per week.
There were no significant differences in reports of balance confidence between the group that participated in vigorous exercise than those who participated in moderate exercise. Those who participated in vigorous exercise were more likely to feel calm (p=0.006), more energetic (p=0.0234), and less worn out (p=0.030). The group who participated in moderate exercise reported accomplishing less as a result of emotional problems than the group who participated in vigorous exercise (p=0.036).
Conclusions :
This pilot study of the impact of exercise on people with visual impairment showed improvements in feelings of emotional well being in people who participated in more vigorous exercise. Participants were already exercising regularly, which likely contributed to high balance confidence regardless of the level of exercise.
This abstract was presented at the 2022 ARVO Annual Meeting, held in Denver, CO, May 1-4, 2022, and virtually.