The Relationship of Location and Educational Achievements to Vision Impairment in Asians

Sonali Trivedi, Walden University

Abstract

Introduction: Increasing incidence of vision impairment in the United States reinforces the urgent need for research and public health awareness. Eye diseases are of common concern in Asian and other ethnic groups globally. Glaucoma, cataracts, macular degeneration, myopia, and retinitis are types of eye diseases and common causes of vision impairment in Asians. This study addressed the current gap in knowledge regarding vision impairment prevalence among Asian-Americans by geographical location and level of education. Socio-ecological theory was used as the theoretical foundation.

Method: A cross-sectional secondary dataset from U.S. Census Bureau included 3,916,947 participants' survey responses from 2011 through 2015 which was analyzed using a logistic regression model. The model addressed the relationships between variables such as education level, geographic location, and vision impairment.

Results: The results in this study exhibited that educational level and geographic location were statistically significant, p < 0.001 and p = 0.004 respectively and they were determined as predictors of vision impairment among Asian-Americans. The statistical significance p < 0.001 for age and gender as confounders in the results exhibited that the variations in these confounders were responsible for vision impairment prevalence.

Conclusion: The findings from this study have positive implications for social change among Asian-American communities. This can serve as a basis for exploring the relationships between vision impairment and other social or environmental factors which have not yet been assessed.