Age‐related macular degeneration in Portugal: prevalence and risk factors in a coastal and an inland town. The Coimbra Eye Study – Report 2

• Published in: Acta ophthalmologica (Oxford, England) England), 2016-09, Vol.94 (6), p.e442-e453
• Main Authors: Cachulo, Maria da Luz, Laíns, Inês, Lobo, Conceição, Figueira, João, Ribeiro, Luísa, Marques, João P., Costa, José, Vieira, António, Rodrigues, João, Alves, Dalila, Nunes, Sandrina, Costa, Miguel, Rodrigues, Victor, Cunha‐Vaz, José, Delcourt, Cecile, Silva, Rufino
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Age; Age Distribution; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; age‐related macular degeneration; Cross-Sectional Studies; Female; Geographic Atrophy - diagnosis; Geographic Atrophy - epidemiology; Geography; Humans; Macular degeneration; Male; Middle Aged; Ophthalmology; Population; Portugal - epidemiology; Prevalence; Risk Factors; Sex Distribution; Wet Macular Degeneration - diagnosis; Wet Macular Degeneration - epidemiology
• ISSN: 1755-375X; 1755-3768
• DOI: 10.1111/aos.12950

Purpose To determine the age‐ and sex‐specific prevalence of early and late age‐related macular degeneration (AMD) in two Portuguese population‐based samples and to identify its risk factors. Population A population of 6023 adults aged ≥55 years was recruited from two Portuguese primary healthcare units in the central region of Portugal – one from a coastal (n = 3000) and another from an inland town (n = 3023). Methods Cross‐sectional population‐based study. Participants were enrolled in the two locations between August 2009 and October 2013. Responders underwent standardized interviews and ophthalmologic examination, including digital fundus imaging. All fundus photographs were graded according to an International Classification and Grading System. The main outcome measures consisted of age‐ and sex‐adjusted prevalence of early and late AMD. Potential epidemiologic risk factors were also evaluated using logistic regression analysis. Results Of the 6023 subjects enrolled, 5996 had gradable fundus images and were included in the analysis. The crude prevalence of early and late AMD was 6.99 and 0.67%, respectively, for the coastal town and 15.39 and 1.29% for the inland town. Age‐ and sex‐adjusted prevalence of any AMD for the Portuguese population was 12.48% (95% CI: 11.61–13.33) with late AMD accounting for 1.16% (95% CI: 0.85–1.46). Neovascular AMD (NV‐AMD) and geographic atrophy (GA) accounted for 0.55% (95% CI: 0.36–0.75) and 0.61% (95% CI: 0.37–0.84) of individuals, respectively. After adjusting for possible confounding factors, prevalence of early and late AMD increased with increasing age (OR = 1.35; 95% CI: 1.23–1.49 for early and OR = 3.01; 95% CI: 2.22–4.08 for late AMD, per each decade of age increase, p