Tielsch J M, Sommer A, Witt K, Katz J, Royall R M
Dana Center for Preventive Ophthalmology, Wilmer Eye Institute, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205.
Arch Ophthalmol. 1990 Feb;108(2):286-90. doi: 10.1001/archopht.1990.01070040138048.
Data on the prevalence of blindness and visual impairment in multiracial urban populations of the United States are not readily available. The Baltimore Eye Survey was designed to address this lack of information and provide estimates of prevalence in age-race subgroups that had not been well studied in the past. A population-based sample of 5300 blacks and whites from east Baltimore, Md, received an ophthalmologic screening examination that included detailed visual acuity measurements. Blacks had, on average, a twofold excess prevalence of blindness and visual impairment than whites, irrespective of definition. Rates rose dramatically with age for all definitions of vision loss, but there was no difference in prevalence by sex. More than 50% of subjects improved their presenting vision after refractive correction, with 7.5% improving three or more lines. Rates in Baltimore are as high or higher than those reported from previous studies. National projections indicate that greater than 3 million persons are visually impaired, 890,000 of whom are bilaterally blind by US definitions.
关于美国多种族城市人口中失明和视力损害患病率的数据难以获取。巴尔的摩眼疾调查旨在解决这一信息匮乏问题，并提供过去未得到充分研究的年龄种族亚组患病率的估计值。来自马里兰州巴尔的摩东部的5300名黑人和白人组成的基于人群的样本接受了眼科筛查检查，其中包括详细的视力测量。无论采用何种定义，黑人失明和视力损害的患病率平均比白人高出两倍。对于所有视力丧失的定义，患病率都随年龄急剧上升，但按性别划分患病率没有差异。超过50%的受试者在屈光矫正后视力得到改善，其中7.5%的人视力提高了三行或更多行。巴尔的摩的患病率与之前研究报告的患病率一样高或更高。全国预测表明，超过300万人存在视力损害，其中89万人按照美国的定义为双侧失明。
