Experts undecided on whether seniors should get routine vision checks

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force believes current data isn't adequate to assess the potential benefits and harms of such screening in people 65 or older.

The task force is an independent, volunteer panel of experts that reviews the scientific evidence and makes recommendations on preventive health services.

"We need more evidence on accurate ways to screen for eye conditions in older adults in a primary care setting," task force chair Dr. Al Siu said in a USPSTF news release. Siu is Mount Sinai Health System chair, and a professor in the department of geriatrics and palliative medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, in New York City.

However, task force member Dr. Michael Pignone said that "older adults who are having vision problems should talk to their primary care doctor or eye specialist."

Pignone, a professor of medicine at the University of North Carolina, said that "in the absence of clear evidence, primary care doctors should use their clinical judgment …