Bountziouka, V;
Cumberland, P;
Rahi, J;
(2021)
Impact of persisting amblyopia on socio–economic, health and well–being outcomes in adult life: findings from the UK Biobank study.
Value in Health
, 24
(11)
pp. 1603-1611.
10.1016/j.jval.2021.05.010.
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Abstract
Objectives: This study aimed to investigate associations between persisting amblyopia into adulthood and its “real-life” impacts and inform the current debate about the value of childhood vision screening programs. Methods: Associations between persisting amblyopia and diverse socioeconomic, health, and well-being outcomes were investigated in multivariable-adjusted (sex, age, ethnicity, deprivation) regression models, with 126 400 participants (aged 40-70 years) of the UK Biobank with complete ophthalmic data. Analysis by age group (cohort 1, 60-70 years; cohort 2, 50-59 years; cohort 3, 40-49 years) assessed temporal trends. Results: Of 3395 (3%) participants with confirmed amblyopia, overall 77% (2627) had persisting amblyopia, declining from 78% in cohort 1 to 73% in cohort 3. The odds of persisting amblyopia were 5.91 (5.24-6.66) and 2.49 (2.21-2.81) times greater in cohort 1 and cohort 2, respectively, than cohort 3. The odds were also higher for more socioeconomically deprived groups and for white ethnicity. Reduced participation in sport, adverse general and mental health, and well-being were all independently associated with persisting amblyopia, with the strongest associations in the youngest cohorts. Associations with lower educational attainment and economic outcomes were only evident in the oldest cohort. Conclusions: There has been a decline in the overall frequency of persisting amblyopia since the introduction of universal child vision screening in the United Kingdom. Nevertheless, most adults treated for amblyopia in childhood have persisting vision deficits. There was no evidence that persisting amblyopia has vision-mediated effects on educational, employment-related, or economic outcomes. The observed adverse outcomes were largely those not directly mediated by vision. Patients undergoing treatment should be counseled about long-term outcomes.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | Impact of persisting amblyopia on socio–economic, health and well–being outcomes in adult life: findings from the UK Biobank study |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.jval.2021.05.010 |
| Publisher version: | https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jval.2021.05.010 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | This version is the author accepted manuscript. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions. |
| Keywords: | amblyopia, long-term outcomes, public health policy, screening |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Population Health Sciences > UCL GOS Institute of Child Health UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Population Health Sciences > UCL GOS Institute of Child Health > Population, Policy and Practice Dept |
| URI: | https://discovery-pp.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10130155 |
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