Vision Impairment is Associated with Mortality

A meta-analysis finds that vision impairment and blindness are tied to an increased risk of mortality, prompting the need to address global eye health disparities.

March 5, 2021 2:08 PM

Author | Jordyn Imhoff

Michigan Medicine

The global population is aging, and so are their eyes. In fact, the number of people with vision impairment and blindness is expected to more than double over the next 30 years.

A meta-analysis in The Lancet Global Health, consisting of 48,000 people from 17 studies, found that those with more severe vision impairment had a higher risk of all-cause mortality compared to those that had normal vision or mild vision impairment.

According to the data, the risk of mortality was 29% higher for participants with mild vision impairment, compared to normal vision. The risk increases to 89% among those with severe vision impairment.

Importantly, four of five cases of vision impairment can be prevented or corrected. Globally, the leading causes of vision loss and blindness are both avoidable: cataract and the unmet need for glasses.

The study's lead author, Joshua Ehrlich, M.D., M.P.H., sought to better understand the association between visual disabilities and all-cause mortality.

The work compliments some of Ehrlich's recent research, also in The Lancet Global Health Commission on Global Eye Health, that highlighted the impact of late-life vision impairment on health and well-being, including its influence on dementia, depression, and loss of independence.

"It's important these issues are addressed early on because losing your vision affects more than just how you see the world; it affects your experience of the world and your life," says Ehrlich. "This analysis provides an important opportunity to promote not only health and wellbeing, but also longevity by correcting, rehabilitating, and preventing avoidable vision loss across the globe."

This research was funded by Wellcome Trust, Commonwealth Scholarship Commission, National Institutes of Health, Research to Prevent Blindness, the Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Trust, Moorfields Eye Charity, National Institute for Health Research, Moorfields Biomedical Research Centre, Sightsavers, the Fred Hollows Foundation, the Seva Foundation, the British Council for the Prevention of Blindness, and Christian Blind Mission.

Paper cited: "Association between vision impairment and mortality: a systematic review and meta-analysis," The Lancet Global Health. DOI: 10.1016/S2214-109X(20)30549-0

Featured News & Stories

yellow tinted graphic moving with mouth opening seeing down throat red and tonsils in pink in back

Health Lab

Study finds tonsil removal not linked to undesirable weight gain, contrary to popular belief

A trial involving Michigan Medicine researchers has upended a long-held belief that adenotonsillectomies for children with mild sleep-disordered breathing lead to undesirable weight gain.

patient looking at paper with provider in scrubs blue in clinic

Health Lab

How race impacts patients’ response to cancer immunotherapy

The first large scale analysis finds immune checkpoint inhibitors are equally effective in Black and white patients, with Black patients having fewer side effects.

bone close up of cells inside green bbble with cells inside in yellow brown pink and red orange background

Health Lab

How breast cancer cells survive in bone marrow after remission

A new study from researchers at the University of Michigan and the University of California San Diego has shed light on a previously poorly understood aspect of breast cancer recurrence: how cancer cells survive in bone marrow despite targeted therapies.

emergency sign wording in red on brick building

Health Lab

Refining tools that spot risk of violence in young adults in urban ERs may save lives

Half of young adult patients treated in emergency departments in three urban hospitals across the country reported experiencing violence either as a victim or aggressor, including firearm violence, in the six months prior to seeking treatment, according to a University of Michigan study.

Minding Memory

Greenspace and Late-Life Cognitive Decline

In this episode Matt and Lauren will speak with Dr. Marcia Pescador Jimenez, an Assistant Professor in the Department of Epidemiology at Boston University whose research focuses on understanding the relationship between exposure to green space and health outcomes (including hypertension and cognitive measures). Emerging research has shown that midlife risk factors may delay or even prevent the onset of dementia later in life - among these include physical activity and social interaction. It’s not a stretch to imagine how a person’s environment may impact behaviors such as physical activity. For instance, there are places that lack sidewalks and parks that make exercising exceedingly difficult. Among environmental epidemiologists, there is growing interest in understanding how the built and natural environment influence our behaviors that, in turn, influence our health. We encourage you to listen to this episode while on a walk outside!

Health Lab

Nerve damage reduced in prediabetic mice with diet, exercise

A low calorie diet and high intensity exercise can reduce nerve damage in prediabetic mice, according to a Michigan Medicine study.

Global Footer Secondary Navigation