Prevalence of Refractive Errors among the Elderly Population of Sari, Iran

Purpose: To determine the prevalence of the refractive errors in the elderly population of Sari, Iran Methods: In this study, after selecting the participants through random cluster sampling, they all received ocular examinations including visual acuity (VA) measurement, refraction, fundoscopy and tonometry. After measuring uncorrected visual acuity (UCVA), non-cycloplegic refraction was performed for all participants with an autorefractometer and the results were checked with manual retinoscopy. Results: The prevalence of myopia, hyperopia, astigmatism and anisometropia were 19.7% [95% confidence interval (CI) 17.0-22.4], 39.5% (95% CI 36.1-42.9), 23.6% (95% CI 20.7-26.4), and 7.8% (95% CI 6.0-9.6), respectively. Male gender and cataract were also significantly correlated with myopia. Female gender and age were correlated with hyperopia. Astigmatism was significantly correlated with cataract and a decrease in age. With-the-rule (WTR), against-the-rule (ATR) and oblique astigmatisms were detected in 7.5%, 13.1% and 3.5% of the participants, respectively. Overall, the prevalence of at least one type of refractive error was 64.0% (95%CI 60.7-67.3) among the participants. Conclusion: The results of this study indicated that hyperopia was the major anomaly in our population. Since the combination of presbyopia and hyperopia results in an undesirable visual condition in the elderly, it is important to pay proper attention to visual problems in this age group.