title: The Brazilian Amazon Region Eye Survey: Design and Methods.
abstract: To describe the study design, operational strategies, procedures, and baseline characteristics of the Brazilian Amazon Region Eye Survey (BARES), a population-based survey of the prevalence and causes of distance and near visual impairment and blindness in older adults residing in the city of Parintins.
  
  
  
  Cluster sampling, based on geographically defined census sectors, was used for cross-sectional random sampling of persons 45 years and older from urban and rural areas. Subjects were enumerated through a door-to-door survey and invited for measurement of uncorrected, presenting and best-corrected visual acuity and an ocular examination.
  
  
  
  Of 9931 residents (5878 urban and 4053 rural), 2384 individuals (1410 urban and 974 rural) were eligible and 2041 (1180 urban and 861 rural) had a clinical examination (response rate 85.6%). The majority of participants were female (1041, 51.0%); the average age was 59.9 ± 11.1 years (60.2 ± 11.2 years for urban and 59.4 ± 11.1 years for rural); 1360 (66.6%) had primary schooling or less (58.1% in urban and 78.4% in rural) and 57.8% were resident in urban areas. The age distribution between sexes was similar (p = 0.178). Both sex and age distributions of the sample were comparable to that of the Brazilian Amazon Region population.
  
  
  
  The BARES cohort will provide information about the prevalence and causes of near and distance vision in this underprivileged and remote population in Brazil.
authors.affiliation: a Departamento de Oftalmologia e Ciências Visuais, Escola Paulista de Medicina , Universidade Federal de São Paulo , São Paulo , SP , Brasil.
authors.forename: Solange R
authors.initials: SR
authors.lastname: Salomão
authors.affiliation: a Departamento de Oftalmologia e Ciências Visuais, Escola Paulista de Medicina , Universidade Federal de São Paulo , São Paulo , SP , Brasil.|b Departamento de Oftalmologia, Otorrinolaringologia e Cirurgia de Cabeça e Pescoço , Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto da Universidade de São Paulo , Ribeirão Preto , SP , Brasil.
authors.forename: João Marcello
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Furtado
authors.affiliation: a Departamento de Oftalmologia e Ciências Visuais, Escola Paulista de Medicina , Universidade Federal de São Paulo , São Paulo , SP , Brasil.
authors.forename: Adriana
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Berezovsky
authors.affiliation: a Departamento de Oftalmologia e Ciências Visuais, Escola Paulista de Medicina , Universidade Federal de São Paulo , São Paulo , SP , Brasil.
authors.forename: Nívea N
authors.initials: NN
authors.lastname: Cavascan
authors.affiliation: a Departamento de Oftalmologia e Ciências Visuais, Escola Paulista de Medicina , Universidade Federal de São Paulo , São Paulo , SP , Brasil.
authors.forename: Alberto N
authors.initials: AN
authors.lastname: Ferraz
authors.affiliation: c Divisão de Oftalmologia, Departamento de Cirurgia , Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade Federal do Amazonas , Manaus , AM , Brasil.|d Instituto de Olhos de Manaus , Manaus , AM , Brasil.
authors.forename: Jacob M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Cohen
authors.affiliation: e Departamento de Salud Publica , Universidad de La Frontera , Temuco , Chile.
authors.forename: Sergio
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Muñoz
authors.affiliation: a Departamento de Oftalmologia e Ciências Visuais, Escola Paulista de Medicina , Universidade Federal de São Paulo , São Paulo , SP , Brasil.
authors.forename: Rubens
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Belfort
mesh_terms: D017677:Age Distribution; D001766:Blindness / Q000453:epidemiology*; D001938:Brazil / Q000453:epidemiology; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006306:Health Surveys / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D012424:Rural Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D017678:Sex Distribution; D014505:Urban Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D015354:Vision, Low / Q000453:epidemiology*; D014792:Visual Acuity
keywords: Adults; Brazilian Amazon; baseline characteristics; blindness; methodology; population-based study; visual impairment