More eye disease

In the December 2023 edition of the journal Ophthalmology, Dr. Joshua Ehrlich and colleagues published a study that showed that the prevalence of eye disease is increasing. They studied Medicare beneficiaries 68 years old and older.

Among other findings, they found that the prevalence of macular degeneration increased from 6.8% in 2005 to 9.4% in 2019. If more people over age 68 have more eye diseases, there is an increasing burden of eye health problems. This is important to recognize, as this can affect research funding and similar issues.