Advancing the Sustainable Development Goals through improving eye health: a scoping review

Justine H Zhang; Jacqueline Ramke; Catherine Jan; Covadonga Bascaran; Nyawira Mwangi; João M Furtado; Sumrana Yasmin; Cynthia Ogundo; Miho Yoshizaki; Ana Patricia Marques; John Buchan; Peter Holland; Brandon A M Ah Tong; Jennifer R Evans; Nathan Congdon; Aubrey Webson; Matthew J Burton

doi:10.1016/S2542-5196(21)00351-X

Advancing the Sustainable Development Goals through improving eye health: a scoping review

Lancet Planet Health. 2022 Mar;6(3):e270-e280. doi: 10.1016/S2542-5196(21)00351-X. Epub 2022 Feb 25.

Authors

Justine H Zhang¹, Jacqueline Ramke², Catherine Jan³, Covadonga Bascaran⁴, Nyawira Mwangi⁵, João M Furtado⁶, Sumrana Yasmin⁷, Cynthia Ogundo⁸, Miho Yoshizaki⁴, Ana Patricia Marques⁴, John Buchan⁴, Peter Holland⁹, Brandon A M Ah Tong¹⁰, Jennifer R Evans¹¹, Nathan Congdon¹², Aubrey Webson¹³, Matthew J Burton¹⁴

Affiliations

¹ International Centre for Eye Health, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK; Manchester Royal Eye Hospital, Manchester, UK. Electronic address: justine.zhang@lshtm.ac.uk.
² International Centre for Eye Health, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK; School of Optometry and Vision Science, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.
³ Lost Child's Vision Project, Taree, NSW, Australia.
⁴ International Centre for Eye Health, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK.
⁵ International Centre for Eye Health, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK; Department of Clinical Medicine, Kenya Medical Training College, Nairobi, Kenya.
⁶ Division of Ophthalmology, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo, Brazil.
⁷ Sightsavers, Islamabad, Pakistan.
⁸ International Centre for Eye Health, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK; Department of Ophthalmology, Mbagathi Hospital, Nairobi, Kenya.
⁹ International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness, London, UK.
¹⁰ The Fred Hollows Foundation, Melbourne, VIC, Australia.
¹¹ International Centre for Eye Health, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK; Centre for Public Health, Queen's University, Belfast, UK.
¹² Centre for Public Health, Queen's University, Belfast, UK; Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China.
¹³ Permanent Mission of Antigua and Barbuda to the United Nations, New York, NY, USA.
¹⁴ International Centre for Eye Health, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK; National Institute for Health Research Biomedical Research Centre, Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and UCL Institute of Ophthalmology, London, UK.

PMID: 35219448
DOI: 10.1016/S2542-5196(21)00351-X

Abstract

UN member states have committed to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030. This Review examines the published evidence on how improving eye health can contribute to advancing the SDGs (beyond SDG 3). We identified 29 studies that showed direct benefits from providing eye health services on SDGs related to one or more of poverty (SDGs 1, 2, and 8), education (SDG 4), equality (SDGs 5 and 10), and sustainable cities (SDG 11). The eye health services included cataract surgery, free cataract screening, provision of spectacles, trichiasis surgery, rehabilitation services, and rural community eye health volunteers. These findings provide a comprehensive perspective on the direct links between eye health services and advancing the SDGs. In addition, eye health services likely have indirect effects on multiple SDGs, mediated through one of the direct effects. Finally, there are additional plausible links to other SDGs, for which evidence has not yet been established.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Review

MeSH terms

Cities
Humans
Poverty*
Rural Population
Sustainable Development*

Grants and funding

207472/Z/17/Z/WT_/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom