title: Prevalence and associated factors of retinal vein occlusion in the Korean National Health and Nutritional Examination Survey, 2008-2012: A cross-sectional observational study.
abstract: Retinal vein occlusion (RVO) is the second most common retinal vascular diseases and there are only a few Asian population-based studies with small samples. Hypertension is one of a modifiable risk factor of RVO, but no recent studies have shown the relationship between RVO and hypertension control status. We aimed to investigate the prevalence of RVO and its associated factors in an adult Korean population.A nationwide population-based, cross-sectional study. We enrolled 37,982 participants from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey who were 19 years or older and who had undergone ophthalmologic exams from 2008 through 2012. All participants underwent a comprehensive ophthalmic examination, standardized ophthalmic and health interviews, and laboratory investigations. Digital fundus photographs were interpreted by retinal specialists who investigated for the presence of RVO. The prevalence of RVO was then estimated. RVO-associated factors were determined using step-wise logistic regression analyses. We also performed a subgroup analysis to evaluate the association between hypertension and RVO according to hypertension control status and antihypertensive medication use.Of those enrolled participants, 25,765 participants met our study criteria and were included in the analyses. The overall RVO prevalence (n = 205) was 0.6 ± 0.1% (0.6 ± 0.1% for branch RVO and <0.1% for central RVO), and no sex differences were observed. In multivariate logistic regression analyses after adjusting for all potential risk factors, we found the following factors to be significantly associated with RVO: old age (odds ratio (OR) = 1.72, 95% CI: 1.27-2.34), hypertension (OR = 2.56, 95% CI: 1.31-5.08), history of stroke (OR = 2.08, 95% CI: 1.01-4.45), and hypercholesterolemia (OR = 1.84, 95% CI: 1.01-3.35). In a subset of participants with hypertension, participants with uncontrolled hypertension (OR = 3.46, 95% CI: 1.72-6.94) and unmedicated hypertension (OR = 4.12, 95% CI: 2.01-8.46) were more significantly associated with RVO than participants without hypertension.RVO prevalence in Korea was moderate relative to that in the rest of the world, and RVO-associated factors were similar to those identified in other population-based studies. Well-controlled hypertension and antihypertensive medication showed inverse association with RVO.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Hanyang University College of Medicine Department of Ophthalmology, Samsung Medical Center, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Seoul Department of Ophthalmology, Kyungpook National University School of Medicine, Daegu Biostatistical Consulting and Research Lab, Hanyang University, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Yong Un
authors.initials: YU
authors.lastname: Shin
authors.forename: Heeyoon
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Cho
authors.forename: Jong Min
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Kunho
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Bae
authors.forename: Min Ho
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Kang
authors.forename: Jae Pil
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Shin
authors.forename: Eunwoo
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Nam
authors.forename: Se Woong
authors.initials: SW
authors.lastname: Kang
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000150:complications; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009749:Nutrition Surveys; D015995:Prevalence; D056910:Republic of Korea; D012170:Retinal Vein Occlusion / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology*; D012307:Risk Factors; D055815:Young Adult