Study Identifies Factors Behind Good Vision in Elderly Patients

Only 6% of patients over the age of 85 were able to maintain good vision in both eyes. Photo: Alcon. Click image to enlarge. Eyecare professionals seek to help patients maintain good vision throughout their lives. Last week, researchers from Western Michigan University and the University of Michigan presented their findings at ARVO on the sociodemographic and clinical factors linked with excellent vision in elderly patients.The researchers used the SOURCE data consortium to identify patients 85 and older at tertiary care institutions. They defined “excellent” vision as having visual acuity greater than or equal to 20/25 in both eyes at every visit after the age of 85. They performed statistical analysis to identify which sociodemographic and clinical factors were linked to good vision.The group identified a total of 41,687 patients, of which 6% (2,384 patients) had excellent vision in both eyes. Based on the data, male patients had 22% greater odds of maintaining excellent vision compared with female patients, and urban residents had 51% higher odds of excellent vision compared with rural residents. Non-English speaking patients had 60% lower odds of excellent vision. Race and affluence of the residence community weren’t linked to maintaining good vision.The researchers reported that several conditions significantly reduced the odds of maintaining excellent vision: cataract (28% reduced odds), macular degeneration (75% reduced odds), glaucoma (70% reduced odds) and diabetic retinopathy (68% reduced odds). Pseudophakic patients had 110% greater chance of maintaining excellent vision in both eyes.They concluded that “after accounting for common ocular comorbidities that can limit vision, selected sociodemographic factors also appear to be important predictors in whether a given patient is able to achieve this important outcome late into life.”Original abstract content ©2025 Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology. Mahmood N, Marwah S, Stein JD. Factors associated with maintaining excellent vision in both eyes among the oldest of the old patients. Abstract presented on May 8, 2025, at the 2025 ARVO Annual Meeting in Salt Lake City, Utah.