Prenatal Factors May Be Crucial in Adult Vision
Many studies have shown that visual impairment can have far-reaching consequences on an individual’s employment, socioeconomic status and general health. Until recently, however, the effects of prenatal and childhood biological and sociologic factors on adult vision were poorly understood.A recent study by Rahi et al from University College London, United Kingdom, investigated whether adult visual function is influenced by early life biological and social factors. The authors found that specific determinants can have a marked effect on the eventual manifestation of adult visual impairment. Those determinants include low birth weight, intrauterine growth retardation, maternal smoking during pregnancy and certain markers of socioeconomic deprivation in childhood.
The population-based study gathered data from 9330 individuals from the 1958 British birth cohort. This unique database contains health information regarding every person born in Britain within a single week in 1958. In this vision study, the authors selected participants for whom medical information was available from medical examinations conducted from birth to middle age.
Study participants were examined at age 44 or 45 years for near, distance and stereo visual acuity. Examination results indicated the following:
1.3% had visual deficits that prevented them from passing a driving test and were defined as having socially significant visual impairment.
0.9% of the study participants had severe visual impairment or blindness. Logistic regression and other methods were used to determine the relationships among vision functions, early-life influences, and health and social outcomes in middle age. The study’s authors said that the statistically significant results were repeated for all causes and levels of visual impairment.
Interestingly, the authors noted that the same early-life factors that appear to affect adult vision also correlate with other diseases and conditions, such as hypertension, as noted in other health studies. Because visual impairment can be devastating to an adult’s lifestyle and overall health, researchers said the findings are especially important and may lead to future studies to determine prevention strategies, as well as aid in early diagnosis of these conditions by better determining which young children might be at greatest risk. By identifying risk factors early, researchers hope to improve the eventual quality of life these individuals will experience when they reach adulthood.
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