Quality of Life in Adults With Strabismus

Purpose To assess relative quality of life in patients with strabismus. Design Retrospective cohort study. Methods The 25-item National Eye Institute Visual Functioning Questionnaire (NEI VFQ-25) was performed in 42 strabismic adults over the age of 50 years at a single institution. Subscale scores were compared with those of patients with other ocular diseases, including diabetic retinopathy, age-related macular degeneration (AMD), glaucoma, cataract, cytomegalovirus (CMV) retinitis, and low vision. Results Median visual acuity was 20/20 (range 20/12.5–20/50), and 34 patients (81%) reported diplopia. Strabismic patients performed the same or worse on nearly all vision-related subscales than did patients with diabetic retinopathy, age-related macular degeneration, glaucoma, cataract, and CMV retinitis. Additionally, strabismic patients reported significantly worse ocular pain than all comparison groups before any surgery was performed. Conclusions Strabismus impacts quality of life through both functional and psychosocial factors. Physicians treating strabismic patients should recognize these quality-of-life issues and address them accordingly.