Abdulbari Bener,^1,2 Huda S Al-Mahdi,³ Fareed A Warid,³ Sara M Darwish^4
1Department of Medical Statistics and Epidemiology, Hamad General Hospital, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar, ²Department of Evidence for Population Health Unit, School of Epidemiology and Health Sciences, The University of Manchester, Manchester, UK, ³Department of Ophthalmology, and ⁴Department of Endocrinology, Hamad General Hospital, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar

Aim: To determine the prevalence of low vision and its correlation with associated risk factors in an elderly population in a rapidly developed Arabian society.
Methods: A prospective descriptive study enrolled all patients older than 50 years who were referred from the Department of Endocrinology outpatient clinics to the Department of Ophthalmology at the Hamad General Hospital, Doha, Qatar, from January 2003 to December 2006. All patients underwent visual acuity testing, using the Snellen E chart, and an eye examination, using a slit lamp, to ascertain the prevalence of visual impairment among elderly people, as well as associated comorbidities and demographic characteristics.
Results: The prevalence of low vision was higher among women (52.7%) than among men (43.7%). Overall, 47.6% of the patients had low vision. Most patients were in the 50 to 59 years age group (men, 45.5%; women, 51.4%). Nearly 40% of the patients with low vision had consanguineous marriages. Only 32.2% had a family history of visual impairment. Patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (relative risk, 1.32; 95% confidence interval, 1.13-1.54), hypertension (relative risk, 1.30; 95% confidence interval, 1.11-1.52), and retinopathy (relative risk, 1.71; 95% confidence interval, 1.39-2.10) were at significantly higher risk for low vision than were patients without these comorbidities (p < 0.0001). Nearly half of the patients with low vision had diabetes mellitus (44.7%).
Conclusions: The prevalence of low vision was high in this elderly population, especially in women. Type 2 diabetes mellitus, hypertension, and retinopathy were significant risk factors for low vision.

Key words: Aged, cohort studies, Epidemiology, Vision disorders, Vision, low

Asian J Ophthalmol. 2008;10:126-129.