Table 3.

Sociodemographic Characteristics Associated with Psychological Distress Among Adults ≥18 Years with General Vision Impairment or ≥1 Visual Function Impairment in the United States in 2016–2017

Sociodemographic characteristics	Psychological Distress Adjusted Odds Ratio (95% Confidence Interval)a
	General Vision Impairmentb		≥1 Visual Function Impairmentc
	Mild/moderate (K6 score: 8–12)	Serious (K6 score: 13–24)	Mild/moderate (K6 score: 8–12)	Serious (K6 score: 13–24)
Age, years
18–39	2.48 (1.83, 3.38)	4.46 (2.89, 6.90)	3.50 (2.45, 5.00)	5.14 (3.34, 7.93)
40–64	2.78 (2.13, 3.64)	6.09 (4.33, 8.57)	2.67 (2.04, 3.48)	6.20 (4.63, 8.29)
≥65	1.00 [Reference]	1.00 [Reference]	1.00 [Reference]	1.00 [Reference]
Sex
Male	1.00 [Reference]	1.00 [Reference]	1.00 [Reference]	1.00 [Reference]
Female	1.30 (1.08, 1.58)	1.56 (1.23, 1.99)	1.51 (1.25, 1.82)	1.57 (1.26, 1.95)
Race/ethnicity
White, non-Hispanic	1.25 (0.93, 1.67)	2.11 (1.52, 2.93)	1.51 (1.12, 2.03)	1.40 (1.03, 1.91)
Black, non-Hispanic	1.00 [Reference]	1.00 [Reference]	1.00 [Reference]	1.00 [Reference]
Hispanic	1.13 (0.79, 1.61)	1.38 (0.86, 2.22)	1.48 (1.02, 2.16)	1.26 (0.82, 1.92)
Other	0.86 (0.55, 1.34)	2.00 (1.21, 3.30)	1.47 (0.93, 2.31)	1.40 (0.79, 2.50)
Education level
<High school	1.32 (1.02, 1.71)	1.44 (1.04, 1.99)	1.32 (1.03, 1.70)	1.42 (1.06, 1.90)
High school/GED	1.01 (0.80, 1.27)	1.18 (0.92, 1.51)	1.15 (0.93, 1.42)	1.38 (1.08, 1.77)
>High school	1.00 [Reference]	1.00 [Reference]	1.00 [Reference]	1.00 [Reference]
Marital status
Married/domestic partnership	1.00 [Reference]	1.00 [Reference]	1.00 [Reference]	1.00 [Reference]
Not marriedd	1.16 (0.94, 1.43)	1.55 (1.20, 2.01)	1.14 (0.93, 1.39)	1.43 (1.10, 1.85)
Employment status
Working at a job/business for pay	1.00 [Reference]	1.00 [Reference]	1.00 [Reference]	1.00 [Reference]
Not working at a job/business for pay	1.36 (1.08, 1.71)	2.32 (1.74, 3.09)	1.31 (1.02, 1.68)	2.80 (2.15, 3.66)
Income/poverty ratioe
<1	1.60 (1.21, 2.11)	1.97 (1.41, 2.74)	1.45 (1.10, 1.92)	2.31 (1.69, 3.16)
1 to <2	1.30 (1.02, 1.67)	1.53 (1.13, 2.08)	1.54 (1.20, 1.98)	2.11 (1.58, 2.83)
≥2	1.00 [Reference]	1.00 [Reference]	1.00 [Reference]	1.00 [Reference]
Insurance status
Public	1.18 (0.90, 1.54)	2.08 (1.41, 3.06)	1.79 (1.33, 2.41)	2.61 (1.80, 3.80)
Private	1.00 [Reference]	1.00 [Reference]	1.00 [Reference]	1.00 [Reference]
Both	1.34 (0.92, 1.96)	2.19 (1.40, 3.43)	1.76 (1.22, 2.54)	2.63 (1.68, 4.11)
None	0.87 (0.60, 1.25)	1.56 (1.02, 2.36)	1.13 (0.78, 1.65)	1.79 (1.13, 2.85)

Abbreviations: GED (General Educational Development), K6 (Kessler 6-item Psychological Distress Scale).

^aMultinomial logistic regression was used to calculate adjusted odds ratios for mild/moderate and serious psychological distress (reference: no/low psychological distress which is a K6 score of 0–7). Each type of vision impairment was modeled separately, and the models included all of the sociodemographic characteristics. Multiple imputation was used to impute missing data for income-to-poverty ratio. Sample sizes for each model were: general vision impairment (n=6,702) and ≥1 visual function impairment (n=7,183). Bold indicates statistical significance (95% confidence interval does not contain 1.0).

^bDefined as an affirmative response to the question: “Do you have trouble seeing, even when wearing glasses or contact lenses?”.

^cDefined as having difficulty (the task is somewhat difficult, very difficult, or the person is unable to do the task at all because of his/her eyesight) with any of these six functional tasks: 1) reading ordinary newsprint, 2) seeing up close when doing work or hobbies, 3) going down steps, stairs, or curbs in dim light, 4) driving in daytime in a familiar place, 5) noticing objects off to the side, or 6) finding object on a crowded shelf.

^dWidowed, divorced, separated, or never married.

^eRatio of the family income to the poverty threshold, based on the U.S. Census Bureau federal poverty thresholds given the family’s size and number of children (https://www.census.gov/data/tables/time-series/demo/income-poverty/historical-poverty-thresholds.html).