Association Between Sociodemographic Factors and Vision Difficulty in the National Health Interview Survey: A Population-Based Analysis

center dot PURPOSE: To investigate the relationship between social determinants of health with self-reported vision difficulty. center dot DESIGN: Cross-sectional, population-based analysis. center dot METHODS: The National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) is an annual survey based on the U.S. population >= 18 years of age. It provides self-reported data on demographic characteristics, socioeconomic factors, health status, and health care access. The 2021 NHIS database was used in this study. Adult participants of the NHIS who responded to the vision difficulty question Do you have difficulty seeing, even when wearing glasses or contact lenses? were included in this analysis. The outcome of interest was self-reported vision difficulty by participants. Analysis was done through univariable and multivariable logistic regression. center dot RESULTS: Overall, there were 29,464 participants included in the analysis. Univariable logistic regression showed an increased odds of self-reported vision difficulty among female (odds ratio [OR] 1.28 [95% confidence interval {CI} 1.20-1.38]; P <.001), gay, lesbian, or bisexual participants (OR 1.24 [95% CI 1.04-1.49]; P =.02), those who possessed public compared with private insurance (OR 1.83 [95% CI 1.69-1.99]; P <.001), those with less than a high school education (OR 1.88 [95% CI 1.67-2.13]; P <.001), and those with an income below the poverty threshold (OR 2.22 [95% CI 1.96-2.51]; P <.001). Multivariable analysis revealed an increased risk of vision difficulty reported amongst non-Hispanic Black participants (OR 1.65 [95% CI 1.21-2.25]; P =.002). center dot CONCLUSIONS: A multitude of sociodemographic factors are associated with self-reported vision difficulty in the U.S. population. Our findings emphasize the importance of considering factors of social determinants of health in clinical practice and policymaking for patients with vision loss. (Am J Ophthalmol 2023;255: 30-42. (c) 2023 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Automated summary

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between social determinants of health and self-reported vision difficulty. The results showed that there are several sociodemographic factors associated with self-reported vision difficulty in the U.S. population.