Inequities and Research Gaps in Ophthalmology

Importance Deficient ophthalmologic care is costly to patients, making the identification of groups not receiving adequate care of vital importance. The current landscape of equity in ophthalmic care has yet to be thoroughly investigated and is important to ensure inclusivity and patient-centered care. Objective To perform a scoping review of the literature pertaining to health care inequities in the field of ophthalmology. Evidence Review A comprehensive database search using MEDLINE (via PubMed) and Ovid Embase was done in July 2022. English-language articles published from 2016 to 2021 were included and encompassed all article types except commentaries or correspondence. The search modeled the National Institutes of Health list of designated US health inequity populations, which includes income, education level, occupational status, rural and underresourced area, sex and gender, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) identity, and race and ethnicity. A total of 8170 abstracts and titles were screened by 2 independent investigators, and 189 studies were assessed in full text for eligibility. For inclusion, articles needed to be an ophthalmic study discussing health inequities. In a masked, duplicate fashion, 2 independent investigators screened 75 full-text studies for data extraction using a pilot-tested form. Data extraction included general publication characteristics and health inequity data based on the National Institutes of Health’s defined inequity groups. Findings A total of 75 publications were included. Notable inequities were found among Black and Hispanic patients associated with negative ophthalmic outcomes and mixed associations regarding sex or gender. Overall, lower-income patients were more likely to have vision impairment, use eye care services less, and have lower adherence to eye examinations. No articles within our sample examined LGBTQ inequities among ophthalmology patients since the 2016 National Institutes of Health classification of sexual and gender minority populations. Substantial research gaps were observed within the ophthalmic literature pertaining to the LGBTQ community, race and ethnicity, and rural and underresourced areas. Conclusions and Relevance This scoping review found substantial findings associated with the LGBTQ community, race and ethnicity, and the role of telemedicine in rural and underresourced areas. Because of the importance of ophthalmic care in overall patient health, it is vital to understand the various inequities present and strive to improve the current gaps in the literature. Future studies should (1) examine barriers to clinical study and medical trainee recruitment as well as patient values and preference studies and (2) investigate the implementation of telemedicine in underresourced areas.