Evidence map›Paper›PMID 32773209›Full record

ArticleJournal of optometry

Public knowledge of low vision and blindness, and readability of on-topic online information.

Marta Lupón, Genís Cardona, Manuel Armayones

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of optometry. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
4citing papers in PubMed
0.8field-weighted citation impact, top 19% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

4 citing papers in PubMed, 12 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Article
  2. The effect of visual acuity measurement on triage effectiveness in an ophthalmic emergency department.Graefe's archive for clinical and experimental ophthalmology = Albrecht von Graefes Archiv fur klinische und experimentelle Ophthalmologie · 2025
    Article
  3. Article
  4. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

Marta LupónPsychology, Health & ICT (PSINET), Open University of Catalonia, Rambla del Poblenou 156, 08018, Barcelona, Spain; Vision, Optometry and Health (VOS) - Department of Optics and Optometry, Polytechnic University of Catalonia, Violinista Vellsolà 37, 08022, Terrassa, Spain. Electronic address: marta.lupon@upc.edu.
Genís CardonaVision, Optometry and Health (VOS) - Department of Optics and Optometry, Polytechnic University of Catalonia, Violinista Vellsolà 37, 08022, Terrassa, Spain. Electronic address: genis.cardona@upc.edu.
Manuel Armayonese-Health Center, Open University of Catalonia, Rambla del Poblenou, 156, 08018, Barcelona, Spain. Electronic address: marmayones@uoc.edu.
Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya · ESUniversitat Oberta de Catalunya · ES

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

purposeTo explore the laymen knowledge of low vision and blindness concepts, and to assess the readability of some on-topic information available online.

methodsA cross-sectional study was performed in March 2019. Knowledge was evaluated by means of an ad hoc questionnaire-survey with two dichotomous questions about concepts related to low vision and blindness, followed with a list of 10 true-or-false statements. Readability of two on-topic online texts of different complexity was evaluated asking participants to rate the difficulty they experienced on a Likert scale and, objectively, by means of the freeware INFLESZ Readability Scale for Spanish language. Data analysis included descriptive statistics, t-tests, and ANOVA test (statistical significance: p < 0.05).

resultsFifty-two percent of 103 participants declared never having heard of low vision. Ninety-four percent participants were aware about the word blindness, although most of them misinterpreted it. Neither academic level nor age influenced knowledge (p > 0,05). Higher academic level was related to better readability scores of the complex online text (p < 0.05).

conclusionOverall, the general public has a limited awareness of low vision and a large misconception of blindness. Therefore, visual health education actions should aim at fostering knowledge and literacy on the issue. This strategy may encourage individuals to seek the advice of eye care providers in order to prevent and treat visual impairment, with relevant consequences in time, both in terms of quality of life and costs.

Indexed as

BlindnessDiabetes Mellitus, Type 2Vision, LowChildComprehensionCross-Sectional StudiesHumansQuality of LifeBlindnessHealth literacyLow visionPublic knowledgeReadability

Identifiers

PMID32773209
PMCPMC8258127
OpenAlexW3048258442

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.