“Eye”Dentifying Vision Impairment in the Geriatric Patient

Vision impairment is highly prevalent yet undetected in the elderly population. Without screening and early detection age-related vision loss can lead to various adverse effects. The purpose of this review is to assess the methods of screening geriatric patients for visual impairment that can be employed by nurse practitioners in the primary care setting. A series of databases were searched utilizing the key words aged, geriatric, vision, vision tests, and screening. The Snellen chart, Pinhole assessment, Ophthalmoscope, Cardiff acuity test, Amsler grid, and subjective measures are discussed. All must be utilized cautiously because research has shown that these screening methods are limited in their sensitivity and specificity in detecting ocular disease. No combination of tools is ideal for identifying age-related vision loss although implications for practice are implied.