Journal of Clinical and Experimental Ophthalmology
Open Access

Abstract

Prevalence of Glaucomatous Disease in Young Chinese Adults: A Pilot Study

Christopher S. Sáles, Milica Margeta, Lydia Hsu, Teresa Fu, Janet Y. Tsui, Young H. Kwon, Vicki Chan, Simon Law, Malik Y. Kahook, Amy Fang, Michael Kass, Nermin Girgis, Teresa Chen, James C. Tsai, Robert Feldman, Brian Francis, Shan C. Lin and Kuldev Singh

Purpose: To estimate the prevalence of glaucomatous disease in a pilot study of young adults with Chinese ancestry.
Methods: 164 adults residing in the United States (US) between 20 and 40 years of age inclusively, who selfidentified as being born to two ethnically Chinese parents, were prospectively recruited at nine university and medical center campuses in the US without disclosing the study's purpose. All subjects completed a standardized, closed-ended questionnaire detailing their genealogy and ocular history, followed by a comprehensive ophthalmic examination, including measurement of intraocular pressure (IOP), central corneal thickness (CCT), and axial length. Participants suspected of having glaucoma based on family history, optic nerve appearance, or IOP also underwent static automated white on white threshold perimetry. Main outcome measures included the prevalence of glaucomatous appearing optic nerves and visual fields as well as associated clinical parameters, including myopia, tilted optic nerves, and peripapillary atrophy. All comparisons were performed using the Student's T, Mann-Whitney U, Pearson's χ², and Fisher's exact tests.
Results: Nine subjects (5.5%) were observed to have optic nerve appearance and visual field defects suggestive of glaucomatous disease. There was no statistically significant association between this cluster of findings and any other measured clinical parameter.
Conclusions: Young adult individuals of Chinese ancestry may be at substantial risk for glaucomatous disease. Given the cross sectional nature of this study, longitudinal follow-up of participants deemed to be suspicious for glaucoma will be necessary to ascertain whether or not they demonstrate a progressive course consistent with glaucomatous disease.