The NEI-VFQ-25 in People With Long-term Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus

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Abstract
THE NATIONAL Eye Institute Visual Function Questionnaire (NEI-VFQ) was designed to measure vision-related functioning and the influence of vision problems on health-related quality of life in persons with several eye conditions, such as glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy, age-related cataract, age-related macular degeneration, cytomegalovirus retinitis, and low vision.1 The questions constituting the instrument were developed from focus groups. The reliability and validity of the instrument when used among people with common eye conditions was tested and confirmed.2 However, to date there have been no population-based cohorts of people with diabetes in which the associations of retinopathy and visual acuity with the NEI-VFQ scales have been examined. The purpose of this report is to examine the association of the NEI-VFQ-25 composite scores and specific scale scores with visual acuity, diabetic retinopathy, and other characteristics, in the cohort of persons with type 1 diabetes participating in the 14-year follow-up of the Wisconsin Epidemiologic Study of Diabetic Retinopathy (WESDR).