COVID-19: As patients avoid appointments, vision may be in jeopardy

A report out of the United Kingdom may raise some red flags among ophthalmologists in the United States after it revealed more than a 70% reduction in new referrals and a high rate of missed appointments due to the COVID-19 pandemic. According to a news release by the U.K.-based Macular Society, since the start of the outbreak ophthalmologists in U.K. eye clinics have reported as much as a 25% reduction in the number of patients with known age-related macular degeneration (AMD) attending appointments for sight-saving treatment.

In the report from several U.K. clinics, there also has been a significant drop in new patients presenting with wet AMD, a treatable form of the condition. That report was compiled by Moorfields Eye Hospital, King’s College London Hospital, University Hospital Southampton and Whipps Cross Hospital. Their research reported drops in new referrals from 65% to 87% in the first month of the coronavirus outbreak, compared to the same period in 2019. As a result, investigators have sounded the alarm about the potential impact this could have on patients most at risk for vision loss. In its release, the society said it estimates that this could lead to between 234 and 470 additional cases of severe sight impairment in April alone.

According to the release, the UK Ophthalmology Alliance and the Royal College of Ophthalmologists have calculated that at least 10,000 people with a variety of sight-threatening conditions have missed out on care essential to maintaining their sight in England, Wales and Scotland.

According to the New York Times, hospitals and doctors across the country have reported that patients continue to avoid visits out of feat of contagion even as new cases continue to spike. Many patients who lost their jobs or have experienced a significant drop in income during the pandemic are citing costs as the overriding reason they do not seek the health care they need, according to the newspaper. The long-term impact on the vision of some patients could be severe.

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