JAMDA
Volume 8, Issue 6 , Pages 355-362 , July 2007

Vision Screening in the Elderly

  • Susan Jung, MD

      Affiliations

    • David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA
    • UCLA Multicampus Program in Geriatrics and Gerontology, Los Angeles, CA.
    • ,
  • Anne Coleman, MD, PhD

      Affiliations

    • David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA
    • Jules Stein Eye Institute, Los Angeles, CA
    • UCLA School of Public Health, Los Angeles, CA
    • ,
  • Nancy T. Weintraub, MD

      Affiliations

    • David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA
    • VA Greater Los Angeles Health Care System and Geriatric Research Education Clinical Center, Sepulveda, CA
    • UCLA Multicampus Program in Geriatrics and Gerontology, Los Angeles, CA.
    • Corresponding Author InformationAddress correspondence to Nancy T. Weintraub, MD, UCLA, Greater Los Angeles VA Geriatric Medicine, 16111 Plummer Street (11E), Sepulveda, CA 91343.

References 

  1. Congdon N, O’Colmain B, Klaver CC, et al. Causes and prevalence of visual impairment among adults in the United States. Arch Ophthalmol. 2004;122(4):477–485
  2. Munoz B, West SK, Rubin GS, et al. Causes of blindness and visual impairment in a population of older Americans: The Salisbury Eye Evaluation Study. Arch Ophthalmol. 2000;118(6):819–825
  3. Pizzarello L, Abiose A, Ffytche T, et al. VISION 2020: The Right to Sight: a global initiative to eliminate avoidable blindness. Arch Ophthalmol. 2004;122(4):615–620
  4. Carter TL. Age-related vision changes: A primary care guide. Geriatrics. 1994;49(9):37–45
  5. Carter TL. Low vision: Physician screening helps to improve patient function. Geriatrics. 1995;50(12):51–57
  6. Tumosa N. Aging and the eye (Age related changes in ocular function). In:  Beers MH,  Berkow R editor. The Merck Manual of Geriatrics. 3rd ed.. Whitehouse Station, NJ: Merck and Co., Inc; 2000;p. 1289–1293
  7. Keller BK, Rubin GS. Visual impairment. Clin Geriatr. 2000;8(3):101–105
  8. Quillen DA. Common causes of vision loss in elderly patients. Am Fam Physician. 1999;60(1):99–108
  9. Fleming C, Whitlock EP, Beil T, et al. Screening for primary open-angle glaucoma in the primary care setting. Rockville, MD: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality; 2005;Update No. 04-0548-B, March. AHRQ Publication
  10. Weinreb RN, Khaw PT. Primary open-angle glaucoma. Lancet. 2004;363(9422):1711–1720
  11. Shah R, Wormald R. Glaucoma. Clin Evid. 2003;(9):729–736
  12. Michelson PE. Review: Common visual problems: Symptoms and treatment, Part II. Annals of Long-Term Care. 2005;13(9):41–46
  13. Seddon JM. Multivitamin-multimineral supplements and eye disease: Age-realted macular degeneration and cataract. Am J Clin Nutr. 2007;85(1):304S–307S
  14. Aiello LP. Angiogenic pathways in diabetic retinopathy. N Engl J Med. 2005;353:839–841
  15. Fong DS, Aiello LP, Ferris FL, et al. Diabetic retinopathy. Diabetic Care. 2003;26:S99–S102
  16. Jacbos JM, Hammerman-Rozenbert R, Maaravi Y, et al. The impact of visual impairment on health, function and mortality. Aging Clin Exp Res. 2004;17(4):281–286
  17. Brenner MH, Curbow B, Javitt JC, et al. Vision change and quality of life in the elderly (Response to cataract surgery and treatment of other chronic ocular conditions). Arch Ophthalmol. 1993;111:680–685
  18. Rubenstein LZ, Josephson KR. The epidemiology of falls and syncope. In:  Kenny RA,  O’Shea D editor. Falls and Syncope in Elderly Patients (Clinics in Geriatric Medicine). Philadelphia, PA: WB Saunders; 2002;p. 141–159
  19. Abdelhafiz AH, Austin CA. Visual factors should be assessed in older people presenting with falls or hip fracture. Age Ageing. 2003;32:26–30
  20. Squirrell DM, Kenny J, Mawer N, et al. Screening for visual impairment in elderly patients with hip fracture: Validating a simple bedside test. Eye. 2005;19:55–59
  21. Elliot DB, Patla AE, Furniss M, et al. Improvements in clinical and functional vision and quality of life after second eye cataract surgery. Optom Vis Sci. 2000;77:13–24
  22. Rosen PN. Vision screening for Alzheimer’s disease: Prevention from an ophthalmologist’s perspective. The Permanente Journal. 2004;8(1):15–21
  23. Uhlman RF, Larson EG, Koepsell TD, et al. Visual impairment and cognitive dysfunction in Alzheimer’s disease. J Gen Intern Med. 1991;6:126–132
  24. Anstey KJ, Luszcz MA, Sanchez L. Two-year decline in vision but not hearing is associated with memory decline in very old adults in a population-based sample. Gerontology. 2001;48:289–293
  25. Hall TA, McGwin G, Owsley C. Effect of cataract surgery on cognitive function in older adults. J Am Geriatr Soc. 2005;53:2140–2144
  26. Appollonio I, Carabellese C, Frattola L, et al. Effects of sensory aids on the quality of life and mortality of older people: A multivariate analysis. Age Ageing. 1996;25:89–96
  27. Rovner BW, Ganguli M. Depression and disability associated with impaired vision: the MoVies Project. J Am Geriatr Soc. 1998;46:617–619
  28. Lee AG, Coleman AL. Research agenda-setting program in ophthalmology. J Am Geriatr Soc. 2004;52(3):453–458
  29. Haymes SA, Johnston AW, Heyes AD. Relationship between vision impairment and ability to perform activities of daily living. Ophthal Physiol Opt. 2002;22:79–91
  30. Wood JM. Aging, driving and vision. Clin Exp Optom. 2002;85(4):214–220
  31. McCarty CA, Nanjan MB, Taylor HR, et al. Vision impairment predicts 5-year mortality. Br J Ophthalmol. 2001;85:322–326
  32. Freeman EE, Egleston BL, West SK, et al. Visual acuity change and mortality in older adults. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2005;46(11):4040–4045
  33. Canadian Task Force. Periodic health examination, 1995 update: 3. Screening for visual problems among elderly patients. CMAJ. 1995;152:1211–1222
  34. Owsley C, McGwin G, McNeal SF. Impact of impulsiveness, venturesomeness, and empathy on driving by older adults. J Safety Res. 2003;34:353–359
  35. Watson GR. Low vision in the geriatric population: Rehabilitation and management. J Am Geriatr Soc. 2001;49:317–330
  36. Vision problems in the United States. recommendations for a sate public health response. National Association of Chronic Disease Directors Vision Preservation Resources. Available at: http://www.chronicdisease.org/files/public/cdd2005visionreportOL.pdf.
  37. Singer DE, Nathan DM, Fogel HA, et al. Screening for diabetic retinopathy. Ann of Intern Med. 1992;116(8):683–685
  38. American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO). Comprehensive adult medical eye evaluation. San Francisco (CA): American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO); 2000;
  39. Smeeth L, Iliffe S. Community screening for visual impairment in the elderly. Cochrane Datbase Syst Rev. 2000;(2):CD001054
  40. US Preventive Services Task Force. Recommendations for screening for visual impairment. In: Guide to Clinical Preventive Services. 2nd ed.. Baltimore (MD): Williams & Wilkins; 1996;p. 373–382
  41. Sloan FA, Picone G, Brown DS, et al. Longitudinal analysis of the relationship between regular eye examinations and changes in visual and functional status. J Am Geriatr Soc. 2005;53:1867–1874
  42. Rowe S, MacLean CH, Shekelle P. Preventing visual loss from chronic eye disease in primary care. JAMA. 2004;291(12):1487–1495
  43. Valbuena M, Bandeen-Roche K, Rubin GS, et al. Self-reported assessment of visual function in a population-based study: the SEE project (Slisbury Eye Evaluation). Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 1999;40(2):280–288
  44. Castor TD, Carter TL. Low vision: Physician screening helps to improve patient function. Geriatrics. 1995;50:51–57
  45. Canadian Task Force on the Periodic Health Examination. In: Canadian guide to clinical preventive health care. Ottawa: Canada Communication Group; 1994;p. 932–942
  46. Tielsch JM, Javitt JC, Coleman A, et al. The prevalence of blindness and visual impairment among nursing home residents in Baltimore. N Engl J Med. 1995;332:1205–1209
  47. Mitchell P, Hayes P, Wang JJ. Visual impairment in nursing home residents: The Blue Mountains Eye Study. Med J Aust. 1997;166(2):73–76
  48. Koch JM, Datta G, Makhdoom S, Grossberg GT. Unmet visual needs of Alzheimer’s disease patients in long-term care facilities. J Am Med Dir Assoc. 2005;6:233–236

PII: S1525-8610(07)00111-9

doi: 10.1016/j.jamda.2007.01.096

JAMDA
Volume 8, Issue 6 , Pages 355-362 , July 2007

Article Tools