Assistant Professor of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Medical School and Research Assistant Professor, Survey Research Center, Institute for Social Research
Biography
Dr. Ehrlich is an ophthalmologist and population health researcher. His research is focused on understanding and addressing the adverse impact of vision impairment and blindness on health, disability, and quality-of-life, with a particular focus on older adults. He is the principal investigator of NIH funded research in this field, and also collaborates with a number of large population-based studies on aging in the U.S. and globally to develop and implement measures of vision and eye health. Dr. Ehrlich is a Visiting Scientist at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. He is also an invited member of the Lancet Global Health Commission on Global Eye Health and the Vision Loss Experts Group, a technical advisory group to the World Health Organization and the Global Burden of Disease project. Dr. Ehrlich co-directs the Jerome Jacobson Program in International Ophthalmology where his global health work is focused on research capacity building, systems strengthening, and collaborative research.
Funded Research
Publications
- Huiyan Jin, Yunshu Zhou, Brian C. Stagg, Josh Ehrlich. 2024. Association between vision impairment and increased prevalence of falls in older US adults. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society
- Leidy, Luke, Dickinson, Anna, Ramulu, Pradeep, Josh Ehrlich, Kaleem, Mona A. 2024. Clinical outcome measures in vision and eye care. Survey of Ophthalmology
- Arazi, Mattan, Bal, Sila, Josh Ehrlich, O'Banion, Jacquelyn, Shakarchi, Fatma. 2024. Global Ophthalmology in the Middle East: a Task Force proposal. Eye :1-2.
- Louay Almidani, Bonnielin K. Swenor, Josh Ehrlich, Varshini Varadaraj. 2024. COVID-19 Testing and Vaccination Among US Older Adults with Vision Impairment: The National Health and Aging Trends Study 2021. Ophthalmic Epidemiology
- Kumar, Priyanka, Chung, Grace, Eisenberg, Matthew, Garcia- Morales, Emmanuel, Reed, Nicholas, Sheehan, Orla C, Josh Ehrlich, Swenor, Bonnielin, Varadaraj, Varshini. 2023. Vision Difficulty and Dementia: Economic Hardships among Older Adults and their Caregivers. Frontiers in Epidemiology 3:1210204.
- Josh Ehrlich, Andes, Linda J., Eisenberg, Anna, Saaddine, Jinan, Lundeen, Elizabeth A.. 2023. Trends in the Diagnosed Prevalence and Incidence of Major Eye Diseases in Medicare Part B Fee-for-Service Beneficiaries Aged 68 Years or Older. Ophthalmology 130(12):1240-1247.
- Olivia J. Killeen, Yunshu Zhou, Josh Ehrlich. 2023. Objectively Measured Visual Impairment and Dementia Prevalence in Older Adults in the US. JAMA Ophthalmology 141(8):786-790.
- Lilia T. Popova, Rebhi O. Abuzaitoun, David Marc Fresco, Maria Fernanda Abalem, Chris A. Andrews, David C. Musch, Josh Ehrlich, K. Thiran Jayasundera. 2023. Positive feedback loop between vision-related anxiety and self-reported visual difficulty. Ophthalmic Genetics 44(4):327-333.
- Olivia J. Killeen, Lindsey B. De Lott, Yunshu Zhou, Mengyao Hu, David Rein, Nicholas Reed, Bonnielin K. Swenor, Josh Ehrlich. 2023. Population Prevalence of Vision Impairment in US Adults 71 Years and Older: The National Health and Aging Trends Study. JAMA Ophthalmology 141(2):197-204.
- Rahul S. Iyengar, Michael Krautmann, Satyaprabha Kotha, John Macom, Nick Kourgialis, Josh Ehrlich. 2023. Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of a Regional Program for Identifying and Treating Children with Correctable Refractive Error in Indonesia. Ophthalmic Epidemiology
- Philippa J Clarke, Anam M. Khan, Neil Kamdar, Kristian Seiler, Kenzie Latham-Mintus, Mark D. Peterson, Michelle A. Meade, Josh Ehrlich. 2023. Risk of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus among Adults Aging with Vision Impairment: The Role of the Neighborhood Environment. Disability and Health Journal 16(1):101371.
- Olivia J Killeen, Kate M Saylor, Caroline Hogan, Adam Jacobson, Megan Collins, Josh Ehrlich. 2023. Barriers and facilitators to vision screening in the U.S. pediatric primary care setting: a mixed methods systematic review protocol. JBI Evidence Synthesis 21(5):985-992.
- Twardzik, Erica, Schrack, Jennifer A, Vicki A Freedman, Reed, Nicholas S, Josh Ehrlich, Martinez-Amezcua, Pablo. 2023. An Incomplete Model of Disability: Discrepancies Between Performance-Based and Self-Reported Measures of Functioning. The Journals of Gerontology: Series A
- Joseph, Sanil, Rajendran, Vinoth Kumar, Khetwani, Dhwanit, Uduman, Mohammed Sithiq, Ramasamy, Dhivya, Gowth, Amanulla Mohammed, Kowsalya, Akkayasamy, Josh Ehrlich, Ravilla, Thulasiraj D.. 2023. Evaluation of a telemedicine-enabled universal eye health delivery model in rural southern India. Eye
- Josh Ehrlich, Andrews, Chris, Kumagai, Abigail, Goldstein, Jenna, Jayasundera, K. Thiran, Stelmack, Joan, Massof, Robert, Lee, Paul P., Carlozzi, Noelle E.. 2023. Development and Validation of the Low Vision Severely Constricted Peripheral Eyesight (LV-SCOPE) Questionnaire. American Journal of Ophthalmology 256:70-79.
- Emmanuel E. Garcia Morales, Nicholas S. Reed, Yunshu Zhou, Sahar Assi, Varshini Varadaraj, Frank R. Lin, Josh Ehrlich, Jennifer A. Deal. 2023. Population prevalence of dual sensory loss in community-dwelling US adults 71 years and older: Evidence from the National Health and Aging Trends Study. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society
- Nicholas S. Reed, Emmanuel E. Garcia-Morales, Clarice Myers, Alison R. Huang, Josh Ehrlich, Olivia J. Killeen, Julie E. Hoover-Fong, Frank R. Lin, Michelle L. Arnold, Esther S. Oh, Jennifer A. Schrack, Jennifer A. Deal. 2023. Hearing Loss and Hearing Aid Use Among US Medicare Beneficiaries Aged 71 Years and Older. JAMA Network Open 6(7):e2326320.
- Naveen Karthik, Kayvan Barekatain, Hoang Vu, Danny T.Y. Wu, Josh Ehrlich. 2022. A readability comparison of online Spanish and English patient education materials about vision health. Ophthalmic Epidemiology 29(2):182-188.
- David B. Rein, John S Wittenborn, Zeb Burke-Conte, Rohit Gulia, Toshana Robalik, Josh Ehrlich, Elizabeth A. Lundeen, Abraham D. Flaxman. 2022. Prevalence of Age-Related Macular Degeneration in the US in 2019. JAMA Ophthalmology 140(12):1202–1208.
- Josh Ehrlich, Agarwal, Arunika, Young, Codi, Lee, Jinkook, Bloom, David E.. 2022. The prevalence of vision impairment and blindness among older adults in India: findings from the Longitudinal Ageing Study in India. Nature Aging 2:1000-1007.
- V. Swetha E. Jeganathan, Abigail Kumagai, Harleen Shergill, Michael D. Fetters, Sayoko E. Moroi, John Gosbee, Dae Shik Kim, James D. Weiland, Josh Ehrlich. 2022. Design of Smart Head-Mounted Display Technology: A Convergent Mixed-Methods Study. Journal of Visual Impairment & Blindness 116(5):629-643.
- Kolli, Ajay, Zhou, Yunshu, Chung, Grace, Erin Bakshis Ware, Kenneth M Langa, Josh Ehrlich. 2022. Interactions between the apolipoprotein E4 gene and modifiable risk factors for cognitive impairment: a nationally representative panel study. BMC Geriatrics 22:938.
- V. Swetha E. Jeganathan, Abigail Kumagai, Harleen Shergill, Michael D. Fetters, Sayoko E. Moroi, John Gosbee, Dae Shik Kim, James D. Weiland, Josh Ehrlich. 2022. Design of Smart Head-Mounted Display Technology: A Convergent Mixed-Methods Study. Journal of Visual Impairment & Blindness 116(5)
- Elizabeth A. Lundeen, Sharon Saydah, Josh Ehrlich, Jinan Saaddine. 2022. Self-Reported Vision Impairment and Psychological Distress in U.S. Adults. Ophthalmic Epidemiology 29(2):171-181.
- Josh Ehrlich, Jenna Goldstein, Bonnie K. Swenor, Heather Whitson, Kenneth M Langa, Philip Todd Veliz. 2022. Addition of Vision Impairment to a Life-Course Model of Potentially Modifiable Dementia Risk Factors in the US. JAMA Neurology 79(6):623-626.
- Varshini Varadaraj, Josh Ehrlich, Bonnielin K. Swenor. 2022. Vision Impairment Has Implications for Aging and Health Outcomes, Beyond Ophthalmology. JAMA Network Open 5(5):e2214610-e2214610.
- Ajay Kolli, Mohammed Kabeto, Ryan Jay McCammon, Kenneth M Langa, Josh Ehrlich. 2022. Glaucoma and cognitive function trajectories in a population-based study: Findings from the health and retirement study. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society
- Sanil Joseph, Balagiri Sundar, Vinitha L. Rashme, Soundarya Venkatachalam, Josh Ehrlich, Thulasiraj Ravilla. 2022. Accuracy of a low-cost, portable, refractive error estimation device: Results of a diagnostic accuracy trial. PLOS ONE 17(8):e0272451.
- GBD 2019 Ageing Collaborators, Josh Ehrlich. 2022. Global, regional, and national burden of diseases and injuries for adults 70 years and older: systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease 2019 Study. BMJ 376:e068208.
- Jeremy B. Yorgason, Corinna Trujillo Tanner, Stephanie Richardson, Melanie M.Y. Serrao Hill, Brian Stagg, Markus Wettstein, Josh Ehrlich. 2022. The Longitudinal Association of Late-Life Visual and Hearing Difficulty and Cognitive Function: The Role of Social Isolation. Journal of Aging and Health 34(6-8):765-774.
- Lama Assi, Jennifer A. Deal, Laura Samuel, Nicholas S. Reed, Josh Ehrlich, Bonnielin K. Swenor. 2022. Access to food and health care during the COVID-19 pandemic by disability status in the United States. Disability and Health Journal 15(3):101271.
- Killeen, Olivia J., Xiang, Xiaoling, Powell, Danielle, Reed, Nicholas S., Deal, Jennifer A., Swenor, Bonnielin K., Josh Ehrlich. 2022. Longitudinal Associations of Self-Reported Visual, Hearing, and Dual Sensory Difficulties With Symptoms of Depression Among Older Adults in the United States. Frontiers in Neuroscience
- Jacqueline Ramke, ..., Josh Ehrlich, et al.. 2022. Grand Challenges in global eye health: a global prioritisation process using Delphi method. The Lancet Healthy Longevity 3(1):e31-e41.
- Josh Ehrlich, Mengyao Hu, Zhou, Yunshu, Kai, Rohan, De Lott, Lindsey B. 2022. Visual Difficulty, Race and Ethnicity, and Activity Limitation Trajectories Among Older Adults in the United States: Findings From the National Health and Aging Trends Study. The Journals of Gerontology: Series B 77(Supplement_1):S39-S50.
- Trujillo Tanner, Corinna, Yorgason, Jeremy B, Richardson, Stephanie, Redelfs, Alisha H, Serrao Hill, Melanie M Y, White, Avalon, Stagg, Brian, Josh Ehrlich, Markides, Kyriakos S. 2022. Sensory Disabilities and Social Isolation Among Hispanic Older Adults: Toward Culturally Sensitive Measurement of Social Isolation. The Journals of Gerontology: Series B 77(11):2091-2100.
- Ajay Kolli, Kristian Seiler, Neil Kamdar, Lindsey B. De Lott, Mark D. Peterson, Michelle A. Meade, Josh Ehrlich. 2022. Longitudinal Associations Between Vision Impairment and the Incidence of Neuropsychiatric, Musculoskeletal, and Cardiometabolic Chronic Diseases. American Journal of Ophthalmology 235:163-171.
- Niranjani Nagarajan, Lama Assi, V Varadaraj, Mina Motaghi, Yi Sun, Elizabeth Couser, Josh Ehrlich, Heather Whitson, Bonnielin K Swenor. 2022. Vision impairment and cognitive decline among older adults: a systematic review. BMJ Open 12(1):e047929.
- Alec Bernard, Sara Weiss, Moshiur Rahman, Sheryl S. Ulin, Clive D'Souza, Anah Salgat, Kate Panzer, Joshua D. Stein, Michelle A. Meade, Michael M. McKee, Josh Ehrlich. 2022. The Impact of COVID-19 and Pandemic Mitigation Measures on Persons With Sensory Impairment. American Journal of Ophthalmology 234:49-58.
- Qin,Weidi, Philippa J Clarke, Josh Ehrlich. 2022. Self-Reported Visual Difficulty and Daily Activity Limitations: The Moderating Role of Neighborhood Characteristics. The Gerontologist 63(4):762-772.
- Josh Ehrlich, Swenor, Bonnielin K, Zhou, Yunshu, Kenneth M Langa. 2021. The Longitudinal Association of Vision Impairment with Transitions to Cognitive Impairment and Dementia: Findings from The Aging, Demographics and Memory Study. The Journals of Gerontology: Series A 76(12):2187-2193.
- Ryan Lange, Abigail Kumagai, Sara Weiss, Katherine B. Zaffke, Sherry Day, Donna Wicker, Ashley Howson, K. Thiran Jayasundera, Lori Smolinski, Christina Hedlich, Paul P. Lee, Robert W. Massof, Joan A. Stelmack, Noelle E. Carlozzi, Josh Ehrlich. 2021. Vision-related quality of life in adults with severe peripheral vision loss: a qualitative interview study. Journal of Patient-Reported Outcomes 5:7.
- Varshini Varadaraj, Kayla S. Swiatek, Shang-En Chung, Josh Ehrlich, Lama Assi, Jennifer L. Wolff, Bonnielin K. Swenor. 2021. Caring for Older Adults With Self-Reported Vision Impairment: Findings from the National Study of Caregiving. American Journal of Ophthalmology 227:211-221.
- De Lott, Lindsey B, Kolli, Ajay, Zhou, Yunshu, Mengyao Hu, Josh Ehrlich. 2021. Development and Validation of a Novel Indicator of Visual Disability in the National Health and Aging Trends Study. Innovation in Aging 5(2):igab018.
- De Lott, Lindsey B., Josh Ehrlich. 2021. Patient-Reported Outcomes Research in Neuro-Ophthalmology. Journal of Neuro-Ophthalmology 41(2):141-146.
- Lama Assi, Josh Ehrlich, Yunshu Zhou, Alison Huang, Judith Kasper, Frank R. Lin, Michael M. McKee, Nicholas S. Reed, Bonnielin K. Swenor, Jennifer A. Deal. 2021. Self-reported dual sensory impairment, dementia, and functional limitations in Medicare beneficiaries. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society 69(12):3557-3567.
- Josh Ehrlich, Emily M. Schehlein. 2021. Toward a Better Understanding of Value in Glaucoma Treatment. JAMA Ophthalmology 139(8):874-875.
- Brenda W. Gillespie, Leslie M. Niziol, Josh Ehrlich, Chris A. Johnson, Joseph Caprioli, Paul C. VanVeldhuisen, Paul R. Lichter, David C. Musch. 2021. Demographic, Comorbid, and Clinical Variables Associated With Pointwise Visual Field Damage in Glaucoma: Data From the AGIS and CIGTS Clinical Trials. Translational Vision Science & Technology 10(12):28.
- Jacob J. Abou-Hanna, Amanda N. Leggett, Chris A. Andrews, Josh Ehrlich. 2021. Vision impairment and depression among older adults in low- and middle-income countries. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry 36(1):64-75.
- Brian C. Stagg, Divakar Gupta, Josh Ehrlich, Paula Anne Newman-Casey, Joshua D. Stein, Kensaku Kawamoto, Rachel Hess. 2021. The Use of eHealth Practices by United States Patients with Self-Reported Glaucoma. Ophthalmology Glaucoma 4(1):71-77.
- Josh Ehrlich, Tochukwu Ndukwe, Sandy Chien, Jinkook Lee. 2021. The Association of Cognitive and Visual Function in a Nationally Representative Study of Older Adults in India. Neuroepidemiology 55(2):126-134.
- Kimberly P. Hreha, Brian Downer, Josh Ehrlich, Bret Howrey, Guilio Taglialatela. 2021. Association between vision impairment and cognitive decline in older adults with stroke: Health and Retirement Study. Aging Clinical and Experimental Research 33:2605-2610.
- Kolli, Ajay, Hood, Michelle M, Karvonen-Gutierrez, Carrie, Moroi, Sayoko E, Josh Ehrlich, Gillespie, Brenda W, Dougherty Wood, Sarah, Musch, David C. 2021. Midlife Vision Impairment and Cognitive Function in Later Life: The Study of Women’s Health Across the Nation, Michigan Cohort. The Journals of Gerontology: Series A 76(12):2178-2186.
- Emily M. Schehlein, Dayakar Yadalla, David Hutton, Joshua D. Stein, Rengaraj Venkatesh, Josh Ehrlich. 2021. Detection of Posterior Segment Eye Disease in Rural Eye Camps in South India: A Nonrandomized Cluster Trial. Ophthalmology Retina 5(11):1107-1114.
- Gabrielle D. Lacy, Maria Fernanda Abalema, Chris A. Andrews, Lilia T.Popova, Erin P. Santos, Gina Yu, Hanan Y. Rakine, Natasha Baig, Josh Ehrlich, Abigail T. Fahim, Kari H. Branham, Joan A. Stelmack, Bonnielin K. Swenor, Gislin Dagnelie, David C. Musch, K. Thiran Jayasundera. 2021. The Michigan Retinal Degeneration Questionnaire: A Patient-Reported Outcome Instrument for Inherited Retinal Degenerations. American Journal of Ophthalmology 222:60-68.
- Josh Ehrlich, GBD 2019 Blindness and Vision Impairment Collaborators. 2021. Causes of blindness and vision impairment in 2020 and trends over 30 years, and prevalence of avoidable blindness in relation to VISION 2020: the Right to Sight: an analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study. The Lancet Global Health 9(2):e144-e160.
- Josh Ehrlich, GBD 2019 Blindness and Vision Impairment Collaborators. 2021. Trends in prevalence of blindness and distance and near vision impairment over 30 years: an analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study. The Lancet Global Health 9(2):e130-e143.
- Ahmed F. Shakarchi, Lama Assi, Abhishek Gami, Christina Kohn, Josh Ehrlich, Bonnielin K. Swenor, Nicholas S. Reed. 2021. The Association of Vision, Hearing, and Dual-Sensory Loss with Walking Speed and Incident Slow Walking: Longitudinal and Time to Event Analyses in the Health and Retirement Study. Seminars in Hearing 42(01):075-084.
- Lama Assi, Fatimah Chamseddine, Perla Ibrahim, Hadi Sabbagh, Lori Rosman, Nathan Congdon, Jennifer Evans, Jacqueline Ramke, Hannah Kuper, Matthew J. Burton, Josh Ehrlich, Bonnielin K. Swenor. 2021. A Global Assessment of Eye Health and Quality of Life: A Systematic Review of Systematic Reviews. JAMA Ophthalmology 139(5):526-541.
- Josh Ehrlich, Jacqueline Ramke, David Macleod, Helen Burn, Chan Ning Lee, Justine H Zhang, William Waldock, Bonnielin K Swenor, Iris Gordon, Nathan Congdon, Matthew Burton, Jennifer R Evans. 2021. Association between vision impairment and mortality: a systematic review and meta-analysis. The Lancet Global Health 9(4):e418-e430.
- Divakar Gupta, Josh Ehrlich, Paula Anne Newman-Casey, Brian Stagg. 2021. Cost-Related Medication Nonadherence in a Nationally Representative US Population with Self-Reported Glaucoma. Ophthalmology Glaucoma 4(2):126-130.
- Bonnielin K Swenor, Josh Ehrlich. 2021. Ageing and vision loss: looking to the future. Lancet Global Health 9(4):e385-e386.
- Mengyao Hu, Vicki A Freedman, Josh Ehrlich, Reed, Nicholas S, Billington, Catherine, Kasper, Judith D. 2021. Collecting Objective Measures of Visual and Auditory Function in a National in-Home Survey of Older Adults. Journal of Survey Statistics and Methodology 9(2):309-334.
- Gabrielle D. Lacy, Maria Fernanda Abalem, Chris A. Andrews, Rebhi Abuzaitoun, Lilia T. Popova, Erin P. Santos, Gina Yu, Hanan Y. Rakine, Natasha Baig, Josh Ehrlich, Abigail T. Fahim, Kari H. Branham, Bonnielin K. Swenor, Paul R. Lichter, Gislin Dagnelie, Joan A. Stelmack, David C. Musch, K. Thiran Jayasundera. 2021. The Michigan Vision-Related Anxiety Questionnaire: A Psychosocial Outcomes Measure for Inherited Retinal Degenerations. American Journal of Ophthalmology 225:137-146.
- Xiang, Xiaoling , Vicki A Freedman, Shah, Khushali , Hu, Rita X, Stagg, Brian C, Josh Ehrlich. 2019. Self-reported Vision Impairment and Subjective Well-being in Older Adults: A Longitudinal Mediation Analysis. The Journals of Gerontology: Series A 75(3):589-595.