Prevalence of Visual Impairment and Ocular Pathologies in Nursing Home Residents: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Nursing homes play a crucial role in providing care to the ageing population; however, reports suggest nursing home residents experience difficulties accessing specific medical services, particularly eye care. This review aims to use the available data to find the pooled prevalence of visual impairment (VI) and blindness in the residents of nursing homes. This review also aims to propose future strategies to support the eye health of nursing home residents. The systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA). The online databases of PubMed/ Medline, Embase and Google Scholar were searched systematically for the keywords to identify articles reporting the prevalence of VI and blindness in nursing home residents in different geographical regions. Pooled prevalence of VI and blindness was then calculated using a random-effects model. The heterogeneity was quantified using I-squared statistics. Eleven studies were selected for the review, of which nine involving 3436 subjects were selected for meta-analysis. The pooled prevalence of VI in the residents of nursing homes, calculated using a random-effects model, was 31% (95% CI: 26%–36%), while the pooled prevalence of blindness, calculated using a random-effects model, was 11% (95% CI 7%–16%). High heterogeneity was observed in the reported prevalence of VI ( I 2 = 89%) and blindness ( I 2 = 93.1%) across studies. The prevalence of VI and blindness among nursing home residents was higher than the global prevalence of VI and blindness in the general population. The high heterogeneity between studies demonstrates the need for more investigations with more consistent visual acuity thresholds. A comprehensive eye examination is recommended for all residents before entering the nursing home and an annual eye examination thereafter to address preventable blindness and vision-related quality of life in nursing home residents.