[The 1987 National Epidemiological Survey of Blindness and Low Vision in China]

According to the 1987 National Epidemiological Survey of Blindness and Low Vision, the prevalence of blindness in China was 0.43%, resulting chiefly from cataract (41.06%), corneal diseases (15.38%), trachoma (10.87%), and glaucoma (8.80%); the prevalence of low vision was 0.58%, of which the main causes were cataract (49.83%), ametropia/amblyopia (14.98%), trachoma (9.55%), corneal diseases (8.48%), chorioretinal diseases (6.27%), etc. Among children under 14 years of age, the leading cause of blindness and low vision was hereditary diseases (48.46%), and among the elderly of 60 years and over, the leading cause of blindness and low vision was cataract (73.13%).