Tehran University of Medical Sciences Iranian Journal of Public Health 2251-6085 52 10 2023 09 30 2207 2215 EN Aziz Rezapour Health Management and Economics Research Center, Health Management Research Institute, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Amin Adel School of Health Management and Information Sciences, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Ali Aboutorabi School of Health Management and Information Sciences, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Elahe Askarzade Health Management and Economics Research Center, Health Management Research Institute, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Saeed Barghazan Health Management and Economics Research Center, Health Management Research Institute, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Arefeh Pourtaleb Health Management and Economics Research Center, Health Management Research Institute, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Seyed Saeed Tabatabaee Department of Management Sciences and Health Economics, School of Health, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran 2022 06 08 2022 10 15 Background: Globally, population growth and ageing are expected to increase the risk of vision impairment for more people. Eye disorders impose heavy social and economic burdens on communities through increased poverty, reduced quality of life, and decreased employment. Weaimed to calculate the economic burden of eye diseases in Iran. Methods: Prevalence-based and top-down cost estimation methods were used with a sociological approach. Data were collected from the Northeastern Ophthalmology Center Institute for Health Assessment, and Evaluation, besides the 2017 census. Eye diseases were classified according to the ICD10. Data were analyzed using Excel 2016 software.  Results: Survey data were collected from 19,113 patients with vision loss and eye disorders. The average cost of vision loss/eye disorders was estimated to be $250.3. The findings indicated that the economic burden of visual diseases was $2,844 million a year, with direct medical costs comprising 87% (66% of inpatient and 21% of outpatient) and direct non-medical and indirect costs estimated at 6% and 7%, respectively. Furthermore, 72.8% of direct medical costs was paid by insurance companies, 20.6% by patients, and 6.6% by the government.  Conclusion: Eye diseases and vision loss in Iran, as in other countries, are costly for the health system and society. Instituting effective policies and measures to address this rising burden should be a national priority. Another suggestion in this area would be to focus on preventive care and policies such as health education, highlighting the role of reorientation of health services and advocacy (for policies that promote eye health), where relevant. https://ijph.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijph/article/view/28976 https://ijph.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijph/article/download/28976/8069