Vision Profile and Ocular Characteristics of Special Olympics Athletes: Report from India

Abstract

The proportions of refractive errors and ocular disorders in athletes with intellectual disability attending the SOLCIOE program in South India are similar to those reported for able-bodied school-aged children in urban and rural India. Like that of their able-bodied peers, the visual needs of children with intellectual disability are also not adequately being met.

Vision characteristics of Special Olympics athletes seen at the United States National Games 2010–2018

“…However, our study had higher rates of VI (30.4%) than the United Kingdom and Europe games (14.8% and 11.1%, respectively), although not as high as India's (47.0%) (Gothwal et al 2017;Uzdrowska & Woodhouse 2016;Woodhouse et al 2004). Although additional studies are needed to investigate these differences, one potential factor contributing to the rates of VI is our cohort having a higher proportion of athletes requiring new prescriptions compared with other countries (56.7% vs. 18.7-21.5%) (Gothwal et al 2017, Uzdrowska & Woodhouse 2016, Woodhouse et al 2004. Therefore, while impressive access to eyecare has been demonstrated in US athletes, continued effort must be made for more frequent corrections of refractive error to overall improve visual acuity.…”

“…The first notable study on this unique cohort was conducted on the SOI World Games in 1995, finding that over 65% of athletes had not received eyecare in over 3 years (Block et al 1997). Similar studies have been conducted on regional events like the European games along with country-specific games in the United Kingdom, Germany and India, all finding a high prevalence of uncorrected refractive error and ocular pathology (Gothwal et al 2017;Grundel et al 2020;Uzdrowska & Woodhouse 2016;Woodhouse et al 2004). While the per cent of athletes having never undergone an eye exam was 23% for all SOI games in 2017 worldwide, this per cent varied among the national games, with Germany and the United Kingdom reporting 10-15% compared with India at 32% (Gothwal et al 2017;Grundel et al 2020; Special Olympics Health 2018; Woodhouse et al 2004).…”

“…Similar studies have been conducted on regional events like the European games along with country-specific games in the United Kingdom, Germany and India, all finding a high prevalence of uncorrected refractive error and ocular pathology (Gothwal et al 2017;Grundel et al 2020;Uzdrowska & Woodhouse 2016;Woodhouse et al 2004). While the per cent of athletes having never undergone an eye exam was 23% for all SOI games in 2017 worldwide, this per cent varied among the national games, with Germany and the United Kingdom reporting 10-15% compared with India at 32% (Gothwal et al 2017;Grundel et al 2020; Special Olympics Health 2018; Woodhouse et al 2004). This suggests that looking at the national and regional level could provide a more accurate depiction of disease prevalence and eyecare accessibility for people with ID in specific countries.…”

“…Comparing vision profiles of SOI games by country can reveal differences in eyecare access and ocular health. Our cohort has the lowest prevalence of athletes without a previous eye exam (4.2%) compared with the national games of the United Kingdom (15.0%), Germany (10.0%) and India (32.0%) as well as the 2010 European Summer Games (15.2%) (Gothwal et al 2017;Grundel et al 2020;Uzdrowska & Woodhouse 2016;Woodhouse et al 2004). However, our study had higher rates of VI (30.4%) than the United Kingdom and Europe games (14.8% and 11.1%, respectively), although not as high as India's (47.0%) (Gothwal et al 2017;Uzdrowska & Woodhouse 2016;Woodhouse et al 2004).…”

“…Our cohort has the lowest prevalence of athletes without a previous eye exam (4.2%) compared with the national games of the United Kingdom (15.0%), Germany (10.0%) and India (32.0%) as well as the 2010 European Summer Games (15.2%) (Gothwal et al 2017;Grundel et al 2020;Uzdrowska & Woodhouse 2016;Woodhouse et al 2004). However, our study had higher rates of VI (30.4%) than the United Kingdom and Europe games (14.8% and 11.1%, respectively), although not as high as India's (47.0%) (Gothwal et al 2017;Uzdrowska & Woodhouse 2016;Woodhouse et al 2004). Although additional studies are needed to investigate these differences, one potential factor contributing to the rates of VI is our cohort having a higher proportion of athletes requiring new prescriptions compared with other countries (56.7% vs. 18.7-21.5%) (Gothwal et al 2017, Uzdrowska & Woodhouse 2016, Woodhouse et al 2004.…”