Presenting visual impairment among inpatients with psychotic disorders

Theme: Global and public health ophthalmology
What: Global and public health ophthalmology
Part of: Public Health Ophthalmology: The Intersection between Eye Health and the Environment / Ophtalmologie de la santé publique: Santé publique L’intersection entre la santé oculaire et l’environnement
When: 6/2/2024, 11:15 AM - 12:45 PM
Where: Room | Salle 714 B

Abstract

Purpose: The objective of this study was to characterize the presenting ophthalmologic condition of patients hospitalized for psychotic illness, to assess to which extent the presenting visual deficits could be corrected and to evaluate the impacts of visual impairment on the concomittant psychotic disease.  

Study design: This cross-section observational study used a simple random sample of 101 psychiatric inpatients diagnosed with psychotic illness in a tertiary care center in a North American setting.

Methods: A complete ophthalmologic examination was conducted, including presenting visual acuity and best-corrected visual acuity after optical refraction. Sociodemographic data and measures of psychopathology and functioning (CGI-S score, duration of current hospitalization, total duration of hospitalizations in the past two years) were obtained through medical records, interviews, and the patient’s psychiatric team.   

Results: 23.8% (95%CI [15.9-33.3]) of inpatients diagnosed with psychotic illness had significant binocular presenting visual acuity deficit (defined as 20/40 or worse), 91.7% (95% CI: [73.0-99.0] of which were corrected to a normal range (20/25 or better) with adequate optical correction. 16.8 % (95% CI [10.1-25.6]) had a 20/50 or worse visual acuity. A median of 3 years had elapsed since the patients’ last vision examination. When patients with VA deficits were compared to patients without VA deficits, the former were found to have longer total durations of hospitalization in the last two years  (p= 0.013), and a mild correlation was found between the total length of hospitalization in the last two years and the severity of visual deficits.

Conclusions:  This study, using a complete ophthalmologic examination, demonstrates that presenting visual deficits in psychotic inpatients are both prevalent and easily rectifiable. Considering the possible impacts of visual impairment on daily functioning and psychotic symptoms, clinicians should consider screening for visual deficits in this population.  

Presenter(s)

Presenting Author: Fannie Nadeau

Additional Author(s):

Mazen Choulakian, Department of Ophthalmology, University of Sherbrooke

Alexandre Suey, Department of Psychiatry, University of Sherbrooke

Mathieu Fradet, Department of Psychiatry, University of Sherbrooke

Sylvain Grignon, Department of Psychiatry, University of Sherbrooke

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