Poverty and Eye Health

Poverty and eye health, including vision disability from vision impairment and blindness, are believed to be interrelated. The relationship between poverty and eye health can be interpreted as being two-fold, in the sense that poverty may be a cause of poor eye health and poor eye health may lead to or deepen poverty. Evidence shows that the burden of vision impairment is high in poor people and vision impairment and poverty are linked to each other. However the empirical evidence to answer the questions—Does poverty perpetuate poor eye health? How and why? Does poor eye health deepen poverty?—is sparse globally;especially from low and middle income countries (LMICs). This article therefore aims to examine published information and other secondary data sources that provide insight on the relationship between poverty and eye health, including eye disability caused from vision impairment and blindness. The article provides a conceptual understanding of poverty related attributes that contribute to eye disability from vision impairment and blindness, using evidence sourced from poverty and eye health research studies. The article interrogates general theories and beliefs that have been conceptualised in relation to the impact that the vicious cycle of poverty has on eye health and the contribution of poor eye health on an individual’s poverty status. The major outcomes of this article include: 1) identifying gaps in linking poverty and eye health, 2) establishing key issues that will assist in the development of a theoretical framework, and 3) preparing more appropriately for further investigation on the association between poverty and eye health.

Health literacy of adult Vietnamese population in relation to common eye conditions and factors for not seeking an eye examination

Background:The aim of this study was to assess the health literacy of adult Vietnamese population in relation to common eye conditions and identify factors associated with respondents never having had an eye examination.Methods:Four hundred households from two districts of Ba Ria-Vung Tau(BRVT) province were selected by multistage cluster random sampling.One adult from each household was administered a pre-tested knowledge,attitude and practices toward eye health questionnaire.Chi-square test and logistic regression were used for statistical analysis.Results:Of the 400 subjects interviewed(mean age:51.5±14.5 years;range,30-90 years),53.5%reported never having had an eye examination and 38.0%had spectacles.Awareness of eye conditions ranged from7.0%for glaucoma to 52.8%for red eye.Low awareness of these conditions was significantly associated with rural habitation(odds ratio ranged from 1.65 to 2.78),lower educational attainment(odds ratio ranged from 1.78 to 2.59) and non-spectacle wear(odds ratio ranged from 1.88 to 4.55).Significant barriers to eye examination included lower educational attainment,reported absence of eye problems,non-spectacle wear,lack of affordability,and lack of health insurance.Conclusions:Knowledge of and attitude or practices to eye health is low within the general public in Vietnam,especially among those who have never had an eye examination,are less educated and live in rural areas.Eye health promotion activities are warranted for the population and specific factors that influence eye examination visits should be addressed.