Gender differences in a refractive surgery population of civilian aviators

Nakagawara, V.B., and Montgomery, R.W.

FAA Office of Aerospace Medicine - Civil Aerospace Medical Institute

关键词: Aviation;    Vision;    Refractive Surgery;    Gender;    Aeromedical Certification;    Occupational Health;   

RP-ID  :  DOT/FAA/AM-00/23

美国|英语

来源: Federal Aviation Administration

【 摘 要 】

Introduction. Refractive surgical procedures performed in the United States have increased in recent years and continued growth is projected. Postoperative side effects can affect the quality of vision and may be unacceptable in a cockpit environment. The scientific literature suggests certain females (pregnant, menopausal, elderly) are more likely to experience complications and have less than optimal visual performance after refractive surgery. This study reviews the civil aeromedical experience with refractive surgery by gender.Methods. A list of airmen with Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)-specific pathology codes 130 (radial keratotomy) and 5179 (general eye pathology with surgical prefix), during the period 1 January 1994 through 31 December 1996, was generated from FAA medical databases. The records of airmen with pathology code 5179 were reviewed and those identified as having refractive surgery were collated into a database with those who had pathology code 130. The records were then stratified by class of medical certification and gender, and analyzed using demographic data extracted from FAA publications.Results. There were 3,761 airmen identified as having had refractive surgical procedures during the study period. The prevalence rate for refractive surgery was found to be significantly higher (p < 0.05) for female (8.74/1,000) than for male (6.06/1,000) aviators. Prevalence rates for all classes of FAA medical certification were also found to be significantly higher for female aviators.Conclusions. Higher prevalence rates for female aviators with refractive surgical procedures suggest that they view refractive surgery to be a more viable alternative for correcting refractive error than do their male counterparts. With the more frequent post-surgical complications for selected females with these procedures, further research is recommended to investigate the potential for operational problems in the aviation environment. Continued monitoring may determine whether there is an increased risk of performance loss associated with normal age-related ocular changes.