The prevalence of retinal microvascular abnormalities and association factors in elderly population in rural and urban Beijing
Objective To describe the prevalence of retinal microvascular abnormalities (RMA) and their distributions in the elderly population from Beijing Eye Study. Design Cross-sectional study. Participants 4439 subjects (response rate: 83.4%) with an age of 40+ years in Beijing Eye Study. Methods Color optic disc photographs of all subjects were morphometrically examined. One eye of each participant was randomly selected. Generalized and focal arteriolar narrowing, arteriovenous nicking (arteriovenous crossing abnormalities), and retinopathy were qualitatively assessed. The prevalences and their distributions of all kinds of the retinal macrovascular abnormalities were calculated and analyed. Main Outcome Measures Prevalences of all kinds of the retinal macrovascular abnormalities. Results The prevalence of focal arteriolar narrowing, arteriovenous nicking, and retinopathy was 7.5%, 7.2%, and 7.5%, respectively. Frequencies of all retinal microvascular abnormalities examined increased with age (P<0.001). The microvascular abnormalities were detected more frequently in males (24.4%) than in females (17.6%), in the rural population than in the urban population (P<0.001). Conclusion Retinal vascular abnormalities are common in elderly Chinese aged 40 or more. The prevalence of them increases with age and are more frequently found in people living in rural areas.
