Vision-related quality-of-life in Jamaican glaucoma patients at Kingston Public Hospital

AIM: To determine the vision-related quality-of-life of glaucoma patients and the association between clinical and socioeconomic factors, and vision-related quality-of-life.METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study. Consecutive patients with glaucoma were interviewed using a modified 25-item National Eye Institute Visual Function Questionnaire(VFQ-25) by a single interviewer. Statistical analysis was done to find associations between patient variables and vision-related quality-of-life scores. Confidentiality and anonymity were maintained.RESULTS: Ninety-six participants were recruited in the study. There were 44 males and the mean age for males and females was 65.7 and 69.5y, respectively. The mean composite score was 71.2(with a maximum possible score of 100), with the highest mean score in the colour vision subscale(89.8) and the lowest mean score in the driving subscale(34.0). Worse visual acuity(P<0.001), longer duration of glaucoma(P<0.001) and higher number of glaucoma medications(P<0.001) were associated with a worse composite score. Female participants and those who lived in urban areas had significantly better scores than male participants(P=0.002) and those who lived in rural areas(P=0.017), respectively.CONCLUSION: The vision-related quality-of-life in Jamaican glaucoma patients is comparable to that of glaucoma patients in the Barbados Eye Study and other international studies using the VFQ-25 questionnaire. Worse quality-of-life scores are associated with poorer visual acuity, longer duration of glaucoma, more glaucoma medications, and sociodemographic factors such as male gender and rural residence.