Prevalence of alcohol consumption and risk of ocular diseases in a general population: the Beijing Eye Study.
OBJECTIVE
To examine the associations between alcohol consumption and ocular diseases in the adult population of mainland China.


METHODS
Population-based study.


METHODS
The Beijing Eye Study, performed in 2001, included 4439 subjects (age 40+ years) of 5324 individuals invited to participate (response rate 83.4%). The study was conducted in both a rural region (1973 subjects) and an urban region of Greater Beijing (2466 subjects).


METHODS
All participants underwent an interview, including questions about alcohol consumption and a detailed ophthalmic examination, including photography of the cornea, lens, and fundus.


METHODS
Consumption of alcohol and systemic and ophthalmic parameters.


RESULTS
Information on alcohol consumption was obtained on 4141 subjects (93.3%), of whom 549 (13.3%) reported they consumed beer or wine. In multivariate analysis, alcohol consumption was significantly associated with the systemic parameters of lower age (P = 0.001), male gender (P<0.001), rural region (P<0.001), lower level of education (P = 0.01), and smoking (P<0.001). Alcohol consumption was not a significant risk factor for the prevalences of age-related macular degeneration (P = 0.24), open-angle glaucoma (P = 0.51), angle-closure glaucoma (P = 0.75), diabetic retinopathy (P = 0.35), retinal vein occlusion (P = 0.39), pterygium (P = 0.08), trachoma (P = 0.053), epiretinal membrane (P = 0.09), non-glaucomatous optic nerve atrophy (P = 0.55), dry eye (P = 0.86), cortical cataract (P = 0.67), subcapsular posterior cataract (P = 0.62), or nuclear cataract (P = 0.76), or with the ocular parameters of refractive error (P = 0.99), intraocular pressure (P = 0.19), retinal artery diameters (temporal inferior: P = 0.60), retinal vein diameters (temporal inferior: P = 0.41), or size of alpha zone and beta zone of parapapillary atrophy (P = 0.68).


CONCLUSIONS
When adjusted for the systemic parameters of age, gender, rural/urban region, level of education, and smoking, self-reported moderate consumption of alcohol does not have a significant effect on the prevalence of major ocular diseases or the physiologic parameters of intraocular pressure and refractive error.
Xu
Liang
L
Beijing Institute of Ophthalmology, Beijing Tongren Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China. xlbio@yahoo.cn
You
Qi Sheng
QS
Jonas
Jost B
JB
D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000453:epidemiology*; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D004522:Educational Status; D005128:Eye Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors; D012424:Rural Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012737:Sex Factors; D012907:Smoking / Q000453:epidemiology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014505:Urban Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*