Eyeworld

OPHTHALMOLOGY BUSINESS 56 August 2018 by Liz Hillman EyeWorld Senior Staff Writer ed responses from national surveys also vary in definitions and can be unreliable. "The strength of the VEHSS is that it will incorporate and integrate existing studies and data, as well as introduce some exciting new data systems to the public domain. Altogether, this will create a much more comprehensive picture of the visual health landscape than would be possible using any of the under- lying data sources alone," Dr. Rein and Mr. Wittenborn said, adding that they will be incorporating information from dozens of previ- ously published studies and at least six national surveys. They will be analyzing five administrative claims systems and electronic health record registries for inclusion of data as well. While each data set includ- ed in the VEHSS will be available independently, the program will also combine information from multiple data sources to create a set of comprehensive, nationally and state representative prevalence estimates for vision loss and major eye diseases. "By using multiple data sets we can fill in gaps missing from individual data sources while also adjusting for selection or reporting bias in administrative and registry data using nationally representa- tive data collection systems," they explained. The system is being developed to support the widest amount of possible uses by the widest number of possible users. "The uses of the VEHSS data are limited only by the curiosity and ingenuity of those interested in visual health. We're excited to see what creative uses the public comes up with," Dr. Rein and Mr. Witten- born said. While many studies have ad- dressed the prevalence of specific vi- sual conditions and eye disorders in the U.S. and around the world, the VEHSS aims to be comprehensive. "The VEHSS system is attempt- ing to provide information on a large number of eye and vision conditions, derived from many disparate data sources, evaluated using common disease definitions and methods. The VEHSS will allow users to directly compare estimates for similar conditions across datasets using common evaluative catego- ries. When complete, the VEHSS will also provide summary prevalence es- timates based on information from multiple datasets," Dr. Rein and Mr. Wittenborn said. Rein et al. recently published an update on the VEHSS status, which explains that current prevalence estimates are usually meta-analyses from population-based study data that might not be up to date or na- tionally representative. 3 Self-report- designed to eventually support six previously published surveillance system standards: "(1) identifying newly emergent health problems; (2) assessing the public health impact of problems; (3) identi- fying correlative risk factors for disease acquisition or progression; (4) allocating resources for disease management, care and control, and targeting intervention or research investments; (5) evaluating the effectiveness and impacts of in- terventions, policies, and public health strategies; and (6) supporting research inquiries and scientific hypothesis generation." As Dr. Rein, director of the Public Health Analytics Program, and Mr. Wittenborn, senior research scientist, told EyeWorld, "Timely in- formation on the prevalence of and care for visual health conditions in the healthcare system, and informa- tion on geographic and demograph- ic variations and trends is vital in raising awareness about eye condi- tions, identifying areas for preven- tion and other health responses, and for allocating resources. "Our goal for the VEHSS infor- mation system is to provide infor- mation to the public in a form that is easily accessible, informs a wide range of possible questions and deci- sions, and allows for the evaluation of information at the national and local level," they said. The Vision and Eye Health Surveillance System will provide comprehensive prevalence data in the U.S. T here is a significant eco- nomic burden associated with vision and eye health problems; according to research, it may be the fifth leading cause of U.S. medical expenses. 1 Vision is also a sense that Americans fear losing more than other abilities, such as loss of a limb or loss of hearing. 2 Yet, estimates of the prevalence of ocular issues within the U.S. vary widely. "We as a nation still cannot ac- curately quantify how many people have these conditions," said David Rein, PhD, and John Wittenborn, both with the National Opinion Research Center (NORC) at the Uni- versity of Chicago, Atlanta. "Even for a seemingly simple question, such as how many people are blind, one can find estimates that vary by as much as 500%." As such, in 2015, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention awarded a cooperative agreement to NORC to create a Vision and Eye Health Surveillance System (VE- HSS). 3 According to Dr. Rein and Mr. Wittenborn, the VEHSS is being Establishing a national vision health surveillance system " The uses of the VEHSS data are limited only by the curiosity and ingenuity of those interested in visual health. We're excited to see what creative uses the public comes up with. " —David Rein, PhD, and John Wittenborn

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