Older black Americans are twice as likely to suffer from eye diseases, particularly glaucoma and diabetic retinopathy, than their white contemporaries.
A new grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will allow researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham to work on reducing the rates of visual impairment in African Americans. It is believed that inadequate access to medical care is the cause of this high rate of eye disease in this particular population.
According to study leader Cynthia Owsley, Ph.D, “People with vision impairment are at increased risk for depression, transportation challenges, being unemployed, placement into long-term care, injury and death.”
Source: https://main.uab.edu/Sites/MediaRelations/articles/80565/