ECONOMIC COSTS AND HEALTH BURDEN OF VISION PROBLEMS IN SINGAPORE

Abstract

Visual impairment (VI) is a public health problem with substantial disease burden worldwide. In the thesis, I aimed to measure the economic costs and health burden of VI in Singapore. First, I measured the annual direct medical costs from VI and major eye diseases in Asian population. Second, I measured the medical service utilization, out-of-pocket expenditure and productivity loss of VI in Singapore. Third, I assessed the health burden associated with VI and compared the health burden associated with VI with that associated with other four health conditions. Forth, I investigated the effect of visual acuity on generic health-related quality of life among patients with VI in Singapore. Fifth, I explored the effect of adding a vision dimension to the EQ-5D descriptive system. In conclusion, VI has caused substantial economic and health burden in Singapore.