New data shows striking unmet need in access to eye health across Europe

In Europe 26 per cent of people reporting vision problems are not accessing eye health services. Women, older people, smokers and people living in social isolation in Europe are more likely to be affected by sight loss.

This is according to new research that has just been published for World Sight Day – ‘Self‐reported visual difficulties in Europe and related factors: a European population‐based cross‐sectional survey’.

Authored by Nicolas Leveziel, Tunde Peto, Julie-Anne Little, Rupert Bourne, Serge Resnikoff amongst others, findings also included inequity across countries.

The authors undertook analysis of the 30-country European Health Interview Surveys which incorporate questions around difficulty seeing, alongside other questions based on the Washington Group disability questions.

Zoe Gray, IAPB advocacy, has been part of this journey to access this important data, including presenting to Eurostat and DG Sanco in Luxembourg, with European Coalition for Vision (ECV).

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Photo credit: Man reads by Никон Д90.