Vision impairment associated with symptoms of depression, anxiety, social isolation
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Key takeaways:
- Symptoms of depression, anxiety and severe social isolation were associated with objectively measured vision impairment.
- Depression and anxiety, but not severe social isolation, were linked to self-reported vison impairment.
Individuals with vision impairment have greater odds of experiencing symptoms of depression, anxiety and social isolation, according to new research published in JAMA Ophthalmology.
“In this study, we investigated the associations between objective and self-reported vision and depressive and anxiety symptoms and social isolation among adults in a nationally representative survey, the National Health and Aging Trends Study (NHATS),” Louay Almidani, MD, MSc, from Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, and colleagues wrote. “Further, to understand the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on psychosocial health, we explored these associations with self-reported vision impairment before and after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.”
Using data from NHATS, the researchers identified 2,822 Medicare beneficiaries aged 65 and older with vision impairment who self-reported symptoms of depression and anxiety using the Patient Health Questionnaire.
According to results, median distance presenting visual acuity was 0.1, median near presenting visual acuity was 0.18, and median contrast sensitivity was 1.8. Of included participants, 32.3% had objectively measured vision impairment, and 6.4% had self-reported vision impairment.
Depressive and anxiety symptoms were more prevalent among adults with objectively measured and self-reported vision impairment compared with those without vision impairment. Conversely, severe social isolation symptoms were more prevalent among those with objectively measured vision impairment, but not among those with self-reported vision impairment.
Overall, prevalence of symptoms of anxiety and social isolation increased after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, while symptoms of depression and severe social isolation remain unchanged. Among those with self-reported vision impairment, prevalence of depressive and anxiety symptoms increased after the pandemic, while no differences were noted in prevalence of social isolation and severe social isolation.
“While maintaining eye health will always be important, these findings provide evidence to support prioritizing research aimed at enhancing the health and inclusion of people with vision impairment,” Almidani and colleagues wrote. “These findings suggest that additional longitudinal studies are needed to enhance our understanding of these associations and to determine the influence of environmental factors on them.”
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