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Optical correction more prevalent among women, advantaged social groups, study finds
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A new study in Optometry and Vision Science reports that employees in technical, administrative or intellectual occupations are more likely to wear optical correction than unskilled professionals.
The study also found that women are more likely to wear optical correction than men.
Guisasola and colleagues conducted a cross-sectional study among employees in Spain who underwent the Asepeyo Prevention Society health examination in 2009. The 85,468 participants included 58,397 men and 27,071 women and were 16 to 65 years old, as detailed in the study.
In the health examination, participants self-reported refractive errors and sociodemographic variables and had their visual acuity with their correction measured. Researchers analyzed the types of correction and prevalence along with age, sex and predetermined social classes and occupational groups, according to the study.
Researchers noted that the participants did not undergo any subjective or objective refraction examination.
Results showed that 46% of participants habitually wore optical correction for refractive error. Nonmanual workers were three times more likely to use optical correction that manual workers. They also demonstrated that 54.8% of women used optical correction, as compared to 41.9% of men, as detailed in the study.
"The prevalence of correction use responds not only to the prevalence of refractive error but also to other factors, such as the vision requirements inherent to certain occupations, purchasing power and ability to identify the need for corrective lenses," the authors concluded.
"This study shows a clear link between the use of optical correction and social class and occupational group,” they continued. “The prevalence of the use of correction is higher in more advantaged social groups and is clearly associated with particular occupations. Finally, the use of correction is more prevalent among women than among men."
Researchers noted that the study had several limitations.
"Data were collected for presenting visual acuity (with habitual correction), but not for visual acuity without correction (i.e., without glasses for subjects who normally wear them) or for optimally corrected visual acuity. In addition, the pinhole test was not used to identify uncorrected or undercorrected refractive errors."
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Optom Vis Sci. 2014; doi: 10.1097/OPX.0000000000000222.
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