Lens thickness and five-year cumulative incidence of cataracts: The Beaver Dam Eye Study.
OBJECTIVE
To evaluate whether lens thickness is related to incidence of cataracts.


METHODS
Lens thickness was measured from slit-lamp photographs of the lens at the time of the prevalence evaluation in the Beaver Dam Eye Study. Incident cataract was determined by grading standard slit-lamp and retroillumination photographs of the lens at the baseline and five-year follow-up examinations. Medical history was obtained and blood pressures, height and weight were measured according to protocol.


RESULTS
Lens thickness was positively associated with incident nuclear cataract and inversely associated with incident cortical cataract after accounting for age, sex, diabetes status, hypertension, heavy drinking and cigarette smoking.


CONCLUSIONS
Lens thickness is related to incidence of cataracts. Mechanisms to explain these relationships require further laboratory and epidemiologic investigation.
Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, University of Wisconsin Medical School, Madison, Wisconsin 53705-2397, USA. kleinb@epi.ophth.wisc.edu
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D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002386:Cataract / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology; D016001:Confidence Intervals; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007904:Lens Cortex, Crystalline / Q000473:pathology; D007907:Lens Nucleus, Crystalline / Q000473:pathology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D016017:Odds Ratio; D015995:Prevalence; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D014505:Urban Population; D014922:Wisconsin / Q000453:epidemiology