A comparative analysis of visual acuity related issues in four ophthalmological journals

Abstract

Objective To compare visual acuity (VA) related issues in Chinese ophthalmological journals by analyzing papers published in 4 journals during 2008. Methods Papers published in the Chinese Journal of Ophthalmology, the Chinese Journal of Practical Ophthalmology, the Chinese Journal of Ocular Fundus Disease, and the Chinese Journal of Optometry and Ophthalmology were surveyed. The characteristics of each paper were recorded, including whether the paper mentioned VA, whether the VA mentioned was the result of the paper, the kind of visual acuity chart used,details of the VA test, distance and near VA, correction methods, VA score, and descriptive statistics of the VA. Excel 2003 software was used for data sorting and percentage calculations.Results A total of 1111 papers were published in these 4 journals in 2008, 476 papers mentioned VA, 237 papers had VA as the result. In these 237 papers, 51 mentioned the type of visual acuity chart, 43.1% used the International Standard Visual Acuity chart, 29.4% used the Standard Logarithmic Visual Acuity Chart; 155 papers specified correction methods, best correction predominated; 213 papers specified VA score, 75.1% used a decimal notation, 10.1% used a 5-grade notation; descriptive statistics of the VA data was presented in 216 papers, VA was graded in 66.7% papers, 24.5% were expressed in mean± standard deviation. Conclusion After statistical analysis, papers published in domestic ophthalmology journals have some deficiencies in presenting details of the VA test, especially descriptive statistics, and some mistakes are found. Basic knowledge of optometry and ophthalmology training should be emphasized and enhanced, and editors of ophthalmological journals should also pay attention to these aspects. Key words: Visual acuity; Journal; Bibliometrics