Diabetic Retinopathy
According to Prevent Blindness America (2002), before age 40, diabetic
retinopathy affects Whites more frequently than other races, however Hispanics
are the most commonly affected in later decades.
African Americans are twice as likely to suffer from diabetic related legal
blindness (American Diabetes Association).
The prevalence of diabetic retinopathy in Mexican Americans is 32 40%
(American Diabetes Association).
Macular Degeneration
Age specific prevalence rates of age related macular degeneration are initially
comparable between races, however advance more significantly for Whites after
age 75 (Prevent Blindness America, 2002, p.18).
AREA OF RESIDENCE
In the U.S., most persons who have a vision impairment live in metropolitan areas
(70%), but they are less likely to live in metropolitan areas than are persons
without visual impairments (78%) (Schmeidler & Halfmann, 1998b; based on 1994
NHIS D).
Among all individuals who report
"
serious difficulty seeing, even when wearing
glasses or contact lenses," 33% live in cities, 37% live in suburbs, 28% live in
non metropolitan areas (e.g., small towns) and 1% live in farm areas (Schmeidler
& Halfmann, 1998b).
In comparison to the general population, persons who report serious difficulty
seeing, are over represented in cites and non metropolitan areas and somewhat
under represented in the suburbs (i.e., 48% of general population live in suburbs)
(Schmeidler & Halfmann, 1998b).
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