In focus: Optometry has crucial role in dementia care

A higher proportion of patients with dementia are suffering from visual impairment than their peers – with levels rising further still in care homes – often impacting their quality of life without proper correction.

The optical profession has an increasing role to play, following new research findings that a third of people with dementia had visual acuity worse than 6/12.

The research, entitled the Prevalence of Visual Impairment in People with Dementia (Provide), was launched by the College of Optometrists in collaboration with university research departments and charities last week (Optician 28.04.17).

A parliamentary reception heard how visual impairment was more than twice as common in those living in care homes than for those in their own homes. The study involved 708 people living with dementia aged 60 to 89 years, 389 of whom lived at home and 319 in care home settings.