Trial reportBMJ open2026
Prevalence of presbyopia among social safety net beneficiaries with the cognitive, numeracy and dexterity skills required for smartphone use: a cross-sectional analysis of THRIFT RCT screening data from Kurigram, Bangladesh.
Trial report in BMJ open, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT05510687 (A Randomised Controlled Trial on the Impact of Free Reading Glasses to Support Use of Smartphone Banking in Bangladesh Among Government Old Age Allowance and Widow Allowance Beneficiaries), which is not on this map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
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A Randomised Controlled Trial on the Impact of Free Reading Glasses to Support Use of Smartphone Banking in Bangladesh Among Government Old Age Allowance and Widow Allowance Beneficiaries
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20 authors.
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No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectivesTo determine the prevalence of presbyopia and associated risk factors among Bangladeshi recipients of elderly social safety net payments who were not currently using mobile financial services (MFS) and demonstrated numeracy, dexterity and cognitive prerequisites for smartphone use during eligibility screening for the Transforming Households with Refraction and Innovative Financial Technology (THRIFT) trial. Accessing these payments requires use of online banking, as with a smartphone.
designCross-sectional analysis of trial eligibility screening data.
settingCommunity-based screening conducted in two rural subdistricts in Kurigram District, Bangladesh.
participantsAmong 13 944 Old Age Allowance and Widows' Allowance (WA) beneficiaries screened, 953 met trial eligibility criteria, including passing a smartphone readiness assessment and completing near vision examinations. PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES: Presbyopia, defined as binocular presenting near visual acuity of N6.3 or worse, correctable to at least N5 with near vision glasses and with distance vision of ≥6/12 in both eyes.
resultsAmong 953 participants (mean age 61.4±7.2 years, 62.6% women), presbyopia prevalence was 62.6% (95% CI 59.5 to 65.7). Presbyopia was significantly positively associated with female gender (adjusted prevalence ratio (APR)=1.19, 95% CI 1.02 to 1.41) and receiving WA (APR=1.20, 95% CI 1.04 to 1.38) in multivariable analyses.
conclusionsThis study highlights a substantial burden of uncorrected presbyopia among a prescreened, randomised control trial-eligible subgroup of social safety net beneficiaries in rural Bangladesh, who were not currently using MFS but demonstrated cognitive and functional capacity to use mobile phones, potentially hampering their ability to carry out online banking. Delivery of reading glasses may improve digital financial access and facilitate broader financial inclusion, a hypothesis currently being tested in the parent THRIFT trial. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: NCT05510687.
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