title: Episcleral lipid deposits and scleral plaques in Japan (Kyoto).
abstract: Screening of 189 Mongolian Japanese of both sexes in all age groups for scleral degenerations revealed presence of lipid deposits, especially round the anterior ciliary vessels, in 52%. The prevalence exceeds that among Caucasians in Denmark (N = 689), Eskimos in Greenland (N = 340), and Arabs in Jordan (N = 127), all examined by the same worker employing the same technique. Scleral plaques (well-defined transparency anterior to horizontal muscle) is present in no more than 0.5% of Japanese. This phenomenon is likewise rare among Eskimos, but frequent among Caucasians. The causes of the geographic differences are discussed.
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005006:Ethnicity; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006818:Hyalin / Q000378:metabolism; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007564:Japan; D050356:Lipid Metabolism; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012590:Sclera / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D012737:Sex Factors