Objective: To evaluate the vision-related quality of life in patients with exudative age-related macular degeneration (AMD).
Methods: Retrospective case-series study.One hundred and twenty-two patients with exudative AMD who were treated in Beijing Tongren Eye Center from July 2007 to July 2008 were invited to participate in this study.Vision-related quality of life was evaluated by the 25-item National Eye Institute Visual Functioning Questionnaire.Statistical analysis was performed using t test for data which were normal distribution and using Wilcoxon rank sum test for data which were abnormal distribution.
Results: Eighty-seven cases were fully completed and included in the final analysis within the 122 questionnaires. The total score of the questionnaire was 57.2 ± 18.4, excluded driving item. The lowest scoring item was near activities with mean score of 30.8 ± 22.3. There was statistically significant difference in mental health between male (52.9 ± 26.3) and female (40.8 ± 26.0) (w = 1 175, P < 0.05). Except for the general health and ocular pain, patients with binocular involvement showed statistically significant lower scores than those with monocular involvement in all other subscales (P < 0.05). The two age groups (patients <65 vs. ≥ 65 years old) in binocular involvement group showed statistically significant difference only in the subscale of social activities (56.6 ± 22.2 vs.42.3 ± 30.2) (w = 97, P = 0.013).
Conclusions: This study suggests that exudative AMD damaged patients'near activities seriously.Female patients tends to have lower scores than male in mental health. The score of patients with binocular involvement is lower than that of patients with monocular involvement. Age has significant effects on the social activities of those patients with binocular involvement.