Visual disabilities significantly impact an individual's mental health. Little is known about the prospective relationship between visual disabilities and anxiety disorders and the underlying effects of modifiable risk factors. Our analysis was based on 117,252 participants from the U.K. Biobank, with baseline data collected between 2006 and 2010. Habitual visual acuity was measured by a standardized logarithmic chart, and ocular disorders reported using questionnaires were collected at baseline. Incident hospitalized anxiety recorded using longitudinal linkage with hospital inpatient data, lifetime anxiety disorder, and current anxiety symptoms assessed by a comprehensive online mental health questionnaire were identified over a 10-year follow-up. After adjustments for confounding factors, one-line worse visual acuity (0.1 logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution [logMAR]) was associated with an increased risk of incident hospitalized anxiety (HR = 1.05, 95% CI = 1.01-1.08), lifetime anxiety disorder (OR = 1.07, 95% CI [1.01-1.12]), and current anxiety scores (β = 0.028, 95% CI [0.002-0.054]). Besides poorer visual acuity, the longitudinal analysis also supported that each ocular disorder (including cataracts, glaucoma, macular degeneration, and diabetes-related eye disease) was significantly associated with at least two anxiety outcomes. Mediation analyses highlighted that subsequent onsets of eye diseases, especially cataracts, and lower socioeconomic status (SES) partly mediated the association between poorer visual acuity and anxiety disorders. This study demonstrates an overall association between visual disabilities and anxiety disorders in middle-aged and older adults. In particular, early interventions involving treatments for visual disabilities and effective psychological counseling services sensitive to socioeconomic status may help prevent anxiety in those living with poor vision. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

中文翻译：

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中老年人视力障碍和焦虑症之间的关联和中介：一项基于人群的研究。

视觉障碍会严重影响个人的心理健康。人们对视力障碍和焦虑症之间的潜在关系以及可改变的危险因素的潜在影响知之甚少。我们的分析基于英国生物银行的 117,252 名参与者，基线数据在 2006 年至 2010 年间收集。习惯性视力通过标准化对数图进行测量，并在基线时收集使用问卷报告的眼部疾病。通过与医院住院患者数据的纵向联系记录的住院焦虑事件、终生焦虑障碍以及通过综合在线心理健康调查问卷评估的当前焦虑症状在 10 年的随访中得到确定。调整混杂因素后，一线较差的视力（最小分辨率的对数 [logMAR] 为 0.1）与住院焦虑事件的风险增加相关（HR = 1.05，95% CI = 1.01-1.08）。焦虑障碍（OR = 1.07，95% CI [1.01-1.12]）和当前焦虑评分（β = 0.028，95% CI [0.002-0.054]）。除了视力较差之外，纵向分析还支持每种眼部疾病（包括白内障、青光眼、黄斑变性和糖尿病相关眼病）与至少两种焦虑结果显着相关。中介分析强调，随后出现的眼部疾病（尤其是白内障）和较低的社会经济地位（SES）在一定程度上介导了较差的视力和焦虑症之间的关联。这项研究证明了中老年人视力障碍和焦虑症之间的总体关联。特别是，涉及视力障碍治疗的早期干预措施和对社会经济状况敏感的有效心理咨询服务可能有助于预防视力不佳者的焦虑。（PsycInfo 数据库记录 (c) 2023 APA，保留所有权利）。