Abstract
BACKGROUND: Disability is widely acknowledged as a major contributor to depression, which is a prevalent mental health condition that profoundly affects individuals, especially those with visual impairments. OBJECTIVES: This develops a protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis aim to examine the prevalence and incidence of depression among visually impaired people globally. METHODS: This systematic review and meta-analysis will be conducted in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA-P) guidelines. A thorough search will be conducted using the PubMed, MEDLINE, EMBASE, and ProQuest databases to identify relevant studies published between January 1, 2011, and August 31, 2024, without limitations on language. Two out of three independent reviewers will screen the abstracts and full-text articles, extract data, and assess the risk of bias. Heterogeneity among the included studies will be evaluated individually. Meta-analysis of the pooled prevalence and incidence estimates will be conducted using the metaprop function in StataBE 18.0. Publication bias will be assessed through funnel plot analysis and Egger's test. CONCLUSION: This protocol defines the planned scope and methodology for a forthcoming systematic review and meta-analysis, which aims to provide updated evidence on the prevalence and incidence of depression among individuals with visual impairment. Accordingly, it will facilitate a systematic review and meta-analysis to address the existing research gap by providing precise estimates of the pooled prevalence and incidence of depression in this population. The findings will offer valuable insights to inform public health policy, advocate for further research, and underscore the critical need to prioritize the mental health concerns of individuals with visual impairment. SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION: The protocol has been registered on the Open Science Framework (OSF) Registries with the Registration DOI: 10.17605/OSF.IO/6J4Y2.