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Abstract #9647 Published in IGR 5-3
Longitudinal prevalence of major eye diseases
Lee PP; Feldman ZW; Ostermann J; Brown DS; Sloan FAArchives of Ophthalmology 2003; 121: 1303-1310
OBJECTIVE: To describe the prevalence across time of three chronic eye diseases in a representative cohort of elderly subjects. STUDY DESIGN: Longitudinal observation of Medicare claims. POPULATION: A random sample of Medicare beneficiaries 65 years and older, nationally representative at baseline. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Diagnosis of diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma, and age-related macular degeneration. METHODS: Beneficiaries were followed from 1991 to 1999 unless mortality or enrollment in a health maintenance organization for six or more months in a year intervened. Claims data were analyzed for the presence of codes from the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification, indicating one of the three conditions. Transitions between severity stages were also evaluated. RESULTS: Of 20,325 beneficiaries in 1991, 10,476 were available for analysis in 1999. The prevalence of diabetes mellitus increased from 14.5% in 1991 to 25.6% by 1999, with diabetic retinopathy among persons with diabetes mellitus increasing from 6.9-17.4%. Primary open-angle glaucoma increased from 4.6-13.8%. The percentage of glaucoma suspects increased from 1.5-6.5%, as did the percentage of narrow-angle glaucoma (0.7-2.7%). The prevalence of age-related macular degeneration increased from 5.0-27.1%. Overall, the proportion of subjects with at least one of these three diseases increased from 13.4-45.4%. CONCLUSIONS: The clinical diagnosis of major chronic eye diseases associated with aging increased dramatically in a longitudinal sample. At the end of nine years, nearly half the surviving Medicare beneficiaries had at least one of these diseases.
Dr. P.P. Lee, Department of Ophthalmology, School of Medicine, Department of Economics, and Center for Health Policy, Law, and Management, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
Classification:
1.1 Epidemiology (Part of: 1 General aspects)
