Prevalence, incidence, and risk factors of primary open-angle glaucoma - a cohort study based on longitudinal data from a German public health insurance

Abstract

Background This study estimates the prevalence and incidence rates of primary open -angle glaucoma (POAG) as well as risk factors based on a dataset from the largest German health insurance company. Methods A random sample of 250,000 persons at age 50+ of the Allgemeine Ortskrankenkasse (AOK) from 2010 to 2013 was used. Selected risk factors of POAG incidence were analyzed using multivariate Cox proportional hazard models. Results The age-standardized prevalence of POAG at age 50+ in 2010 was 2.79% (95%-CI: 2.72–2.85%). The age-standardized total incidence rate was 0.38 (0.36–0.39) per 100 person-years. Sex differences were significant for total prevalence and total incidence rates, with higher prevalence and incidence rates for women compared to men. The Cox model revealed a strong age effect, a significantly 19% higher incidence for women ( p ≤ 0.001), injuries of the eye and orbit (175%, p ≤ 0.001), degeneration of iris and ciliary body (155%, p = 0.022), myopia (155%, p ≤ 0.001), retinal vascular occlusions (134%, p ≤ 0.001), hypertension (13%, p ≤ 0.001) and diabetes mellitus (23%, p ≤ 0.001). Conclusion Health claims data are an important data source for estimating POAG occurrence and help overcome the problems of small sample sizes. These results may help to understand the causal pathways of POAG and to develop intervention strategies to increase the awareness of patients and physicians with the aim of reducing POAG incidence. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s12889-019-6935-6) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Primary Open Angle Glaucoma and Vascular Risk Factors: A Review of Population Based Studies from 1990 to 2019

“…Even greater prevalence rates in the elderly were reported in people of African descent-11% in those aged over 80 years in the Baltimore Eye Survey [37], 23.2% in the patients over 75 years of age in the Salisbury Eye Evaluation Glaucoma Study [94], and 24.8% in the male population aged 80 to 86 years in the Barbados Eye Study [93]. Additionally, a recent database analysis study confirmed a strong relationship between age and the prevalence of POAG, however, the incidence rates increased until the age of 85-89 years, and then slightly decreased in those over 90 years of age [95].…”

World Glaucoma Week in Port Harcourt: Comparison of Yield and Public Awareness of Glaucoma Services in two Consecutive Years

“…Glaucoma is a leading cause of blindness and is generally asymptomatic until late in the disease, therefore early diagnosis an essential part of the control strategy [5].…”

Identification of lncRNA–miRNA–mRNA regulatory network associated with primary open angle glaucoma

“…Primary open angle glaucoma (POAG), a frequent type of glaucoma worldwide, is a complex characterized by the progressive permanent degeneration of retinal ganglion cell (RGCs) death and distinctive visual field loss [1,2]. Regarding disease etiology, multiple risk factors, such as age [3,4], elevated intraocular pressure (IOP) [5,6], family history [7], and ethnic background [8], have been established in connection with the risk of POAG. In addition to these risk factors, genetics has also been shown to play a key role in the pathogenesis of POAG [9][10][11].…”