TY - JOUR
T1 - Predictors of and barriers associated with poor follow-up in patients with glaucoma in South India
AU - Lee, Bradford W.
AU - Sathyan, Parthasarathi
AU - John, Rajesh K.
AU - Singh, Kuldev
AU - Robin, Alan L.
N1 - Copyright:
Copyright 2008 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.
PY - 2008/10
Y1 - 2008/10
N2 - Objectives: To determine predictors of and reasons for poor longitudinal glaucoma follow-up in South India. Methods: This 1-to-1, matched, case-control study enrolled 300 patients with established glaucoma. We defined cases (poor follow-up) and controls (good follow-up) based on number of and maximum interval between glaucoma follow-up visits attended in the preceding year. We collected data by oral questionnaire and used step-wise multivariate logistic regression to calculate odds ratios (ORs) for poor follow-up. Results: Adjusting for age and sex, independent predictors of poor follow-up included lack of formal education (adjusted OR, 4.13; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.44-11.90), no use of prescribed glaucoma medications (adjusted OR, 2.17; 95% CI, 1.06-4.43), and belief that follow-up is less important if one uses glaucoma medications and has no noticeable visual changes (adjusted OR, 10.59; 95% CI, 3.74-29.97). Age, sex, and disease severity were not significant predictors. The most prevalent barriers to follow-up were belief that there was no problem with one's eyes (44.4%) and lack of escort (19.7%). Conclusions: Knowing predictors of poor follow-up can help identify patients who need individualized strategies to improve follow-up. Because believing one's eyes are problem-free and lacking escorts are significant barriers to follow-up, novel strategies in patient education (eg, intensive counseling, audiovisual aides, and patient support groups) and escort provision may improve longitudinal glaucoma follow-up and disease management.
AB - Objectives: To determine predictors of and reasons for poor longitudinal glaucoma follow-up in South India. Methods: This 1-to-1, matched, case-control study enrolled 300 patients with established glaucoma. We defined cases (poor follow-up) and controls (good follow-up) based on number of and maximum interval between glaucoma follow-up visits attended in the preceding year. We collected data by oral questionnaire and used step-wise multivariate logistic regression to calculate odds ratios (ORs) for poor follow-up. Results: Adjusting for age and sex, independent predictors of poor follow-up included lack of formal education (adjusted OR, 4.13; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.44-11.90), no use of prescribed glaucoma medications (adjusted OR, 2.17; 95% CI, 1.06-4.43), and belief that follow-up is less important if one uses glaucoma medications and has no noticeable visual changes (adjusted OR, 10.59; 95% CI, 3.74-29.97). Age, sex, and disease severity were not significant predictors. The most prevalent barriers to follow-up were belief that there was no problem with one's eyes (44.4%) and lack of escort (19.7%). Conclusions: Knowing predictors of poor follow-up can help identify patients who need individualized strategies to improve follow-up. Because believing one's eyes are problem-free and lacking escorts are significant barriers to follow-up, novel strategies in patient education (eg, intensive counseling, audiovisual aides, and patient support groups) and escort provision may improve longitudinal glaucoma follow-up and disease management.
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U2 - 10.1001/archopht.126.10.1448
DO - 10.1001/archopht.126.10.1448
M3 - Article
C2 - 18852425
AN - SCOPUS:54049155123
SN - 0003-9950
VL - 126
SP - 1448
EP - 1454
JO - Archives of ophthalmology
JF - Archives of ophthalmology
IS - 10
ER -