Prevalence of mild visual impairment in type 2 diabetes patients over 50 years old in Funing County: Jiangsu Diabetic Eye Disease Study

Objective

To investigate the prevalence and influencing factors of mild visual impairment in type 2 diabetic patients aged ≥50 years living in Funing County, Jiangsu Province.

Methods

A population-based cross-sectional study was adopted.Cluster sampling was conducted among diabetic patients aged ≥50 years registered in the Chronic Disease Information Center of Funing County Center for Disease Prevention and Control from March 7th to April 20th, 2019.General information of selected patients was collected.Visual and ocular examinations on site were performed by ophthalmologists and technicians.The International Council of Ophthalmology standard for mild visual impairment, 0.3≤best corrected visual acuity<0.8 was adopted.The influencing factors of mild visual impairment were analyzed by logistic regression.This study protocol was approved by the Ethics Committee of Affiliated Hospital of Nantong University (No.2014-071).

Results

Among the included 2 067 patients, 1 909 cases completed the investigation, with a response rate of 92.4%.There were 1 146 patients with mild visual impairment in at least one eye, and the prevalence of mild visual impairment was 60.00%.Among the eyes examined, 1 832 eyes were with mild visual impairment, accounting for 47.98%.Cataract (896/1 632), refractive error (515/1 632) and diabetic retinopathy (166/1 632) were the main causes of mild visual impairment in diabetic patients, accounting for 54.90%, 31.61% and 10.19%, respectively.Aging, female gender, low educational attainment, oral hypoglycemic drugs or subcutaneous insulin injection were risk factors for mild visual impairment in both eyes.Higher educational attainment, more sunshine exposure and exercise were protective factors for mild visual impairment in both eyes.

Conclusions

The prevalence of mild visual impairment is relatively high in type 2 diabetic patients.Cataract surgery, correction of refractive error may help to improve mild visual impairment.Strengthening blood glucose control, more physical exercise and outdoor activities may slow the progression of mild visual impairment and prevent it from moderate and severe visual impairment.