Largest Study of Chinese Americans Uncovers Unique Risk Factors for Visual Impairment

CHA Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center (CHA HPMC) announced publication of a study by Rohit Varma, MD, MPH, director of its Southern California Eye Institute, assessing risk factors for vision impairment in Chinese Americans. The largest study on Chinese Americans to date, “Factors Associated with Visual Impairment in Chinese American Adults: The Chinese American Eye Study” was published in Ophthalmic Epidemiology.

The study found that age and self-reported history of ocular disease were most strongly associated with vision loss. Additional risk factors included low education, low acculturation and self-reported history of diabetes. Acculturation is a risk factor unique to Chinese Americans, while the other four risk factors have also been found in studies of other minority groups.

“Most Americans consider losing vision and going blind more frightening than other diseases, and people with vision loss may become socially disengaged, isolated or depressed,” Dr. Varma said in a news release. “By identifying the risk factors for Chinese Americans–the largest minority group outside of Latinos and the fastest-growing group of Asians–we can develop targeted screening programs to reduce the personal and economic burden of vision impairment in this population.”

Specific study results include:

• Participants 70 years and older were 10 times as likely to have vision loss compared to those in their 50s.
• Individuals with a history of ocular disease were more than 4 times as likely to have vision loss.
• Additional risk factors included low education (almost 3 times as likely), low acculturation (almost 6 times as likely) and self-reported history of diabetes (2 times as likely).
• Acculturation is a risk factor unique to Chinese Americans, while other factors – including age, history of eye disease, education and history of diabetes – also have been found to predict vision impairment in Latinos, Blacks, Whites and other Asian populations.

Data were collected as part of the National Eye Institute-funded Chinese American Eye Study (CHES), the largest ophthalmology study among those with Chinese ancestry living in the U.S. The population-based study included 4,582 individuals self-identifying as Chinese Americans aged 50 years and older residing in Monterey Park, California. Participants completed an in-home interview followed by a comprehensive eye examination at a local center.