Colombian Ocular Diseases Epidemiology Study (CODES): Prevalence Incidence, and Sociodemographic Characterization of Vision Impairment (2015–2019), A Nationwide Study

ABSTRACT

Purpose

To describe the prevalence, incidence, and sociodemographic characterization of moderate to severe vision impairment (MSVI) and blindness in Colombia based on the National Health Registry Integrated Social Protection Information System (SISPRO) Database.

Methods

We performed a nationwide population-based study using SISPRO and the International Classification of Diseases. Total and new cases were identified to calculate the prevalence and incidence per 100,000 inhabitants of MSVI and blindness between 2015 and 2019. Blindness was defined as a best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) of less than 20/400 in the better-seeing eye. Meanwhile, MSVI is a BCVA from 20/70 to equal or better than 20/400 in the better-seeing eye. An ANOVA test was performed to identify age differences. A conditional autoregressive model was also employed to depict standardized morbidity rate maps.

Results

From the 50 million inhabitants, the average prevalence and incidence of MSVI were 13.94 and 13.34 between 2015 and 2019, respectively, while for blindness, they were 4.03 and 3.53. Females accounted for most reported cases, and there was a notable shift towards individuals over 50 years (p < 0.001). Valle del Cauca was the region with the most cases reported and the greatest disease burden.

Conclusion

This is the first nationwide population-based study describing the prevalence, incidence, and sociodemographic characterization of blindness and MSVI in Colombia. In recent years, there has been an increased number of cases, prevalence, and incidence, with females over 50 particularly affected. This research provides insight into the country’s vision impairment epidemiology landscape and contributes to formulating public health policies to improve eye health care.

KEYWORDS:

• Blindness
• epidemiology
• incidence
• national databases
• prevalence
• vision impairment

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data availability statement

The information in the databases used in this article is freely accessible and available for research purposes.

Supplementary material

Supplemental data for this article can be accessed online at https://doi.org/10.1080/09286586.2024.2338820.

Authors contributions

Conceptualization: Germán Mejía-Salgado, Carlos Cifuentes-González, Danna Lesley Cruz, Alejandra de-la-Torre. Data curation: Germán Mejía-Salgado. Formal analysis: Germán Mejía-Salgado, Carlos Cifuentes-González, Danna Lesley Cruz. Methodology: Germán Mejía-Salgado, Carlos Cifuentes-González, Danna Lesley Cruz. Project administration: Alejandra de-la-Torre. Supervision: Alejandra de-la-Torre. Visualization: German Mejía-Salgado. Writting: German Mejía-Salgado, Carlos Cifuentes-González, Doménico Barraquer-López, Juan Sebastián Pineda-Sierra, Camilo Andrés Rodriguez-Rodriguez, Paola Saboya-Galindo. Validation: All authors approved the final version.

Additional information

Funding

The author(s) reported there is no funding associated with the work featured in this article.