Retinal detachment in black South Africans.
Rhegmatogenous retinal detachments seen in black patients attending King Edward VIII Hospital Ophthalmology Clinic over a 5-year period from January 1987 to December 1991 were reviewed. Penetrating trauma and diabetic retinopathy were excluded. There were 114 detachments in 112 patients, which gave incidence of 0.46/100,000 of the population served per annum. This confirms the low incidence of this disorder found in black patients in other series. Patients were comparatively young (37.5% less than 30 years of age), men outnumbered women 2:1, and the incidence of blunt trauma was high (29.8%). Over one-third (36.6%) presented with a blind or poorly sighted opposite eye. Late presentation was common. Large posterior breaks occurred in 15.7% of detachments with severe proliferative vitreoretinopathy in 33.3%. These last characteristics accounted for the use of vitrectomy with tamponade as a primary surgical procedure in 32.5% of cases and contributed to the relatively low success rate of reattachment (72.8%). Some of the findings may be influenced by social disadvantage, but the reason for the low incidence of retinal detachment in black patients is not known. A stronger adherence of the retina to the retinal pigment epithelium in black patients is postulated.
Peters
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Department of Ophthalmology, University of Natal, King Edward VIII Hospital, Durban.
D000328:Adult; D044383:Black People; D001766:Blindness / Q000517:prevention & control; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012160:Retina / Q000601:surgery; D012163:Retinal Detachment / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000601:surgery; D013019:South Africa / Q000453:epidemiology; D014792:Visual Acuity