Abstract
Purpose: Primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) has been reported to occur more frequently in Africans, and to follow a more severe course compared to Europeans. We aimed to describe characteristics of POAG presentation and treatment across three ethnic groups from Africa and one from Europe. Methods: We ascertained 151 POAG patients from South African Coloured (SAC) and 94 South African Black (SAB) ethnicity from a university hospital in South Africa. In Tanzania, 310 patients were recruited from a university hospital and a referral hospital. In the Netherlands, 241 patients of European ancestry were included. All patients were over 35 years old and had undergone an extensive ophthalmic examination. Patients were diagnosed according to the ISGEO criteria. A biogeographic ancestry analysis was performed to estimate the proportion of genetic African ancestry (GAA). Results: The biogeographic ancestry analysis showed that the median proportion of GAA was 97.6% in Tanzanian, 100% in SAB, 34.2% in SAC and 1.5% in Dutch participants. Clinical characteristics at presentation for Tanzanians, SAB, SAC and Dutch participants, respectively: mean age: 63, 57, 66, 70 years (p < 0.001); visual acuity in the worse eye: 1.78, 1.78, 0.3, 0.3 LogMAR (p < 0.001); maximum intraocular pressure of both eyes: 36, 34, 29, 29 mmHg (panova < 0.001); maximum vertical cup to disc ratio (VCDR) of both eyes: 0.90, 0.90, 0.84, 0.83 (p < 0.001); mean central corneal thickness: 506, 487, 511, 528 μm (p < 0.001). Fourteen percent of Tanzanian patients presented with blindness (<3/60 Snellen) in the better eye in contrast to only 1% in the Dutch. Conclusion: In this multi-ethnic comparative study, Sub-Saharan Africans present at a younger age with lower visual acuity, higher IOP, larger VCDR, than SAC and Dutch participants. This indicates the more progressive and destructive course in Sub-Saharan Africans.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | e1118-e1126 |
| Journal | Acta Ophthalmologica |
| Volume | 99 |
| Issue number | 7 |
| Early online date | 8 Feb 2021 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Nov 2021 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:Stichting Combined Ophthalmic Research Rotterdam (CORR), BrightFocus Foundation, Algemene Nederlandse Vereniging ter Voorkoming van blindheid, Landelijke Stichting voor Blinden en Slechtzienden, Stichting Beheer het Schild, Prof. dr. Henkes stichting, Rotterdamse Stichting Blindenbelangen, Stichting Glaucoomfonds. European Union Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Sk?odowska-Curie grant agreement No. 675033 (EGRET plus). The GLGS is supported by the Dutch Health Care Insurance Council (CVZ) through the Department of Medical Technology Assessment (MTA) of the University Hospital Groningen, the Netherlands. N.M. Jansonius received the funding for this study from the European Union Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Sk?odowska-Curie grant agreement No. 675033 (EGRET plus). The authors thank all the GIGA study participants for their cooperation. We gratefully acknowledge Suzanne van Schaik, Milou van Bruchem, Hannah Hardjosantoso, Katinka Snoek, Chawan Amin, Vicky Hokken, Corina Brussee, Hilda Roothaert and all ophthalmologist, residents and nurses of the Ophthalmology departments from the Groote Schuur Hospital, Muhimbili National Hospital and CCBRT for their continuous efforts in the recruitment of participants. The GIGA study is supported by grants from Combined Ophthalmic Research Rotterdam, The Netherlands; BrightFocus Foundation (G2015084), USA; UitZicht grant No 2014-22 and 2015-32 (Algemene Nederlandse Vereniging ter Voorkoming van Blindheid, The Netherlands; Landelijke Stichting voor Blinden en Slechtzienden, The Netherlands; Stichting Beheer Het Schild, The Netherlands; Stichting Glaucoomfonds, The Netherlands); Prof. Dr. Henkes stichting, The Netherlands; Rotterdamse Stichting Blindenbelangen, The Netherlands.
Funding Information:
Stichting Combined Ophthalmic Research Rotterdam (CORR), BrightFocus Foundation, Algemene Nederlandse Vereniging ter Voorkoming van blindheid, Landelijke Stichting voor Blinden en Slechtzienden, Stichting Beheer het Schild, Prof. dr. Henkes stichting, Rotterdamse Stichting Blindenbelangen, Stichting Glaucoomfonds. European Union Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Skłodowska‐Curie grant agreement No. 675033 (EGRET plus).
Funding Information:
The GLGS is supported by the Dutch Health Care Insurance Council (CVZ) through the Department of Medical Technology Assessment (MTA) of the University Hospital Groningen, the Netherlands. N.M. Jansonius received the funding for this study from the European Union Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Skłodowska‐Curie grant agreement No. 675033 (EGRET plus).
Funding Information:
The authors thank all the GIGA study participants for their cooperation. We gratefully acknowledge Suzanne van Schaik, Milou van Bruchem, Hannah Hardjosantoso, Katinka Snoek, Chawan Amin, Vicky Hokken, Corina Brussee, Hilda Roothaert and all ophthalmologist, residents and nurses of the Ophthalmology departments from the Groote Schuur Hospital, Muhimbili National Hospital and CCBRT for their continuous efforts in the recruitment of participants. The GIGA study is supported by grants from Combined Ophthalmic Research Rotterdam, The Netherlands; BrightFocus Foundation (G2015084), USA; UitZicht grant No 2014‐22 and 2015‐32 (Algemene Nederlandse Vereniging ter Voorkoming van Blindheid, The Netherlands; Landelijke Stichting voor Blinden en Slechtzienden, The Netherlands; Stichting Beheer Het Schild, The Netherlands; Stichting Glaucoomfonds, The Netherlands); Prof. Dr. Henkes stichting, The Netherlands; Rotterdamse Stichting Blindenbelangen, The Netherlands.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 The Authors. Acta Ophthalmologica published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Acta Ophthalmologica Scandinavica Foundation.