Higher Suicide Risk When Diagnosed with 3 Major Blindness Diseases... "Psychological Impact"

Patients with Glaucoma, Diabetic Retinopathy, and Exudative Macular Degeneration
Up to 5 Times Higher Suicide Risk Within 3 to 6 Months After Initial Diagnosis

A study has found that being diagnosed with the so-called three major blindness-causing diseases?glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy, and exudative macular degeneration?increases the risk of suicide.

Professor Kim Young-guk’s ophthalmology team at Seoul National University Hospital analyzed suicide risk among 2.8 million patients diagnosed with the three major blindness-causing diseases between 2010 and 2020, using data from the National Health Insurance Service and Statistics Korea. The results were announced on the 7th. This study was published online in ‘Ophthalmology,’ the most prestigious journal in the field of ophthalmology.

The research team adjusted for various background variables such as gender, age, income level, and residential area of patients diagnosed with the three major blindness-causing diseases to calculate and compare the suicide risk for each disease.

According to the analysis, among the 2.8 million subjects observed from 2010 to 2020, there were 13,205 suicide deaths, of which 34% (4,514 people) had been diagnosed with sight-threatening eye diseases (STED).

Among suicide deaths caused by sight-threatening eye diseases, the proportions of patients who had glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy, and exudative age-related macular degeneration were 48%, 57%, and 9%, respectively. For those suffering from one or more of these diseases, the suicide risk increased by 1.09 times, 1.40 times, and 1.20 times, respectively.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

In particular, the suicide risk was found to be five times higher between 3 to 6 months after the initial diagnosis, and for patients who became visually impaired while suffering from the disease, the suicide risk further increased by 1.49 times.

Glaucoma is a disease characterized by progressive damage to the optic nerve and has a high prevalence of over one million people in South Korea. Diabetic retinopathy is a condition where retinal capillaries exposed to high blood sugar become blocked or rupture. Macular degeneration is a disease where the macula, the part of the retina concentrated with photoreceptors, is damaged; the number of patients has been steadily increasing due to population aging.

The suicide mortality rate among glaucoma patients steadily increased with age. For diabetic retinopathy, the rate slightly decreased between ages 50 and 70 but then continued to rise. In the case of macular degeneration, the highest suicide mortality rate was observed in the late 80s.

The research team explained, “This study shows that patients diagnosed with major sight-threatening eye diseases, especially the three major blindness-causing diseases, have a higher risk of suicide compared to undiagnosed groups, and that this risk increases with age and worsening vision.”

Professor Kim emphasized, “Major blindness-causing diseases have a significant psychological impact on patients. Active interest from family members and society is necessary, and ophthalmologists, as primary care physicians, must responsibly assess and manage the stress levels of patients with eye diseases.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.