NEI: Vision loss becoming ‘major health problem’

BETHESDA, Md. — Low vision or blindness currently affects one in 28 Americans older than 40 -- for a total of 3.3 million -- and the figure is projected to escalate to 5.5 million by 2020, according to a National Eye Institute news release.

Both low vision and blindness increase significantly with age, particularly in people older than 65, the NEI study notes. For instance, Americans older than 80 comprise 8% of the population, but they account for 69% of people who are blind.

According to the NEI, age-related macular degeneration (AMD), glaucoma, cataract and diabetic retinopathy are the most common eye diseases affecting Americans older than 40. AMD is the leading cause of blindness in white Americans, accounting for 54% of blindness. Cataract and glaucoma are the leading causes of blindness in black Americans. Glaucoma is the leading cause of blindness in Hispanic Americans.

Other significant findings from the study: More than one in 10 white Americans older than 80 has vision loss attributable to AMD; glaucoma is three times more likely to affect blacks as whites; glaucoma prevalence rises rapidly in Hispanics older than 65. Cataract is the leading cause of low vision in Americans, responsible for about 50% of all cases. One in every 12 people with diabetes older than 40 has vision-threatening diabetic retinopathy.

The Eye Disease Prevalence Research Group produced estimates of blindness and low vision in people older than 40, according to the NEI news release. The derived prevalence rates were modeled to the U.S. population using 2000 census data and projected to 2020 based on U.S. Census estimates.

The study is published in the April issue of Archives of Ophthalmology.