Prevalence of vision loss in Latin America and the Caribbean in 2020: magnitude and temporal trends

Purpose: To estimate the prevalence of vision loss for 2020 in Latin America and the Caribbean(LAC) and analyse evolving trends since 1990.

Methods: A meta-analysis using hierarchical models of 37 sources of 33 cross-sectional, population-representative studies from LAC from 1998 to 2018 was undertaken to determine the pre-valence of blindness, moderate and severe vision impairment (MSVI), and mild vision impairment(mild VI), with 95% uncertainty intervals (UIs).

Results: In 2020, the age-standardised prevalence rates of blindness, MSVI, moderate vision impairment (VI), severe VI, and mild VI, were 0.51% (95% UI 0.44%–0.57%), 3.73% (95% UI3.38%–4.08%), 3.35% (95% UI 3.00%–3.69%), 0.38% (95% UI 0.34%–0.43%), and 3.19% (95% UI2.87%–3.53%), respectively. In 1990, there were 15.81 million people with blindness and MSVI in LAC, contributing to 8.66% of the global caseload. In 2020, there were 30.42 million people,including 3.82 million (95% UI 3.14–4.55 million) with blindness and 26.6 million (95% UI23.08–30.3 million) with MSVI, who contributed to 8.99% of the global caseload.

Conclusion: The contribution of vision loss to the overall global burden from LAC has increased over the last 3 decades, and the numbers of people affected with blindness and VI reported throughout the region have also steadily increased. There needs to be greater attention to providing universal eye health coverage across the region.