Eye health measures for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people 2024: interactive data

The main causes of vision impairment and blindness for First Nations people, as a proportion of those with vision loss: Measure 1.2.1

Latest data

Based on the latest available NEHS data, in 2016, the 3 main causes of vision loss for First Nations people aged 40 and over were refractive error (61%), cataract (20%) and diabetic retinopathy (5.2%) (Figure 4). For non-Indigenous Australians with vision loss, the main causes were refractive error (61%), cataract (13%) and age-related macular degeneration (10%) (Figure 4).  

Figure 4: Main causes of vision impairment and blindness by Indigenous status, 2016.

Notes

1. ‘Other’ includes Glaucoma, macular dystrophy, retinal dystrophy, optic atrophy, retinochoroidal scarring, retinitis pigmentosa, myopic retinochoroidal degeneration, keratoconus (only 2 cases), cases with 2 or more causes of vision impairment and cases where a main cause of vision impairment could not be ascribed.
2. Data are weighted to account for sampling rate in each remoteness stratum (Foreman et al. 2017)

Source: National Eye Health Survey 2016

By Indigenous status and sex

In 2016, a higher proportion of First Nations males had refractive error than First Nations females while a higher proportion of non-Indigenous females had refractive error than non-Indigenous males (Figure 5). 

Figure 5: Main causes of vision impairment and blindness by Indigenous status, 2016.

Notes

1. ‘Other’ includes Glaucoma, macular dystrophy, retinal dystrophy, optic atrophy, retinochoroidal scarring, retinitis pigmentosa, myopic retinochoroidal degeneration, keratoconus (only 2 cases), cases with 2 or more causes of vision impairment and cases where a main cause of vision impairment could not be ascribed.
2. Data are weighted to account for sampling rate in each remoteness stratum (Foreman et al. 2017)

Source: National Eye Health Survey 2016