Economic and Social Disparities reported from the InfantSEE Pilot Project: Causes for Concern

Data collected from the 2009 CDC-funded InfantSEE® Week Pilot Project identified a growing rate of causes for concern (need for follow-up care) in the visual health of the infant population across the country. Previous data displayed an overall cause for concern rate of one-in-ten; the 2009 data displayed an overall cause for concern rate of one-in-six. In addition, the pilot project identified significant connections between socio-economic income levels and increased rates of cause for concern in three specific categories (visual acuity, ocular motility and binocularity) Through InfantSEE®, participating optometrists provide a one-time, comprehensive eye and vision assessment to infants in their first year of life. These eye and vision assessments offer early detection of potential eye and vision problems at no cost regardless of income or access to insurance coverage. The results of this pilot project indicate a strong relationship between lower household income levels and a higher prevalence rate of visual causes for concern. In three identifiable vision categories: visual acuity, (p < 0.0023) ocular motility (p <0.0019), and binocularity (p< 0.0008) infants from lower household income levels (<$6,000) displayed higher rates of causes of concern than infants from higher levels of household income. (> $26,000) Future outreach efforts should focus on at-risk populations in various geographic and socio-economic locations across the country to provide an early intervention and health promotion program such as InfantSEE®.