Purpose: The objectives of this survey were to collect data from five European countries (France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom) on the societal costs of spectacle dependence and respondents' willingness to pay (WTP) for freedom from spectacles.
Methods: Samples of citizens age >or=45 years and currently wearing spectacles were selected according to a quota method (age, gender, occupation) and interviewed (22 questions) using a Computer-Assisted Telephone Interviewing system.
Results: In total, 4,157 respondents were interviewed across the 5 countries; 38.4% were age >or=65 years and 55.8% female. Most prescribed lenses were monofocal (49.7-72.8%) in all countries, except in France (29.8%). The most frequent replacement interval (70.4%) was >or=2 years and the average cost was > euro 145 per pair (62.9%). Replacements were most frequent in the UK and expenditure was highest in France. The three most common everyday tasks requiring spectacles were reading (60.4%), watching TV (33.6%) and shopping (28.8%). Willingness to pay varied across countries, the UK subjects expressing the lowest values; this was especially true for men and persons aged < 64 years.
Conclusion: Respondents in France bought mostly expensive spectacles while Italians acquired the least expensive eyeglasses. The spectacle frequency of replacement rate is inversely related to prices. About half of all respondents expressed a WTP, at least partially, for freedom from spectacles.