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Background: To determine whether body height is associated with ocular diseases., Methods: The population-based Beijing Eye Study 2006 included 3,251 (73.2%) subjects out of 4,439 subjects invited to be examined. Ocular and general parameters were examined for associations with body height., Results: Out of the 3,251 subjects included in the study, measurements of body height were available for 3,214 subjects (98.9%). In univariate analysis, short body height was significantly associated with a higher frequency of angle-closure glaucoma (P = 0.04), trachoma (P < 0.001), and pterygium (P = 0.02), a higher degree of cortical cataract (P < 0.001), and a higher frequency of arterial hypertension (P < 0.001). A multivariate analysis, including all confounding parameters which were significantly associated with body height in univariate analysis (i.e., age, gender, rural versus urban region, level of education) revealed that body height by itself was no longer significantly associated with the presence of any of the diseases tested., Conclusions: Angle-closure glaucoma, trachoma, pterygium, cortical cataract and arterial hypertension are present more often in adult Chinese with a short body stature. These associations are due to confounding factors such as age, level of education, and anterior chamber depth, which by themselves are associated with the ocular diseases mentioned.

Background: To evaluate the prevalence and associated factors of diabetic retinopathy in adult Chinese with diabetes mellitus., Methods: The Beijing Eye Study 2006 is a population-based cross-sectional study that included 3,251 (73.2%) subjects (aged 45+ years) out of 4,439 subjects originally participating in the Beijing Eye Study 2001. Diabetes defined as fasting glucose concentrations > or = 7.0 mmol/L or self-reported diagnosis of diabetes was detected in 381/3,251 (12.9%) subjects. Diabetic retinopathy was defined by the presence of at least one microaneurysm in the diabetic subjects according to the Early Treatment of Diabetic Retinopathy Study (ETDRS)., Results: Gradable fundus photographs were available for 362 (95.0%) subjects. Diabetic retinopathy was detected in 101 subjects (27.9%). Most of the diabetic retinopathy was of the mild type (74/101; 73%). Severe non-proliferative or proliferative diabetic retinopathy was present in 16 (16%) subjects, and clinically significant macular edema in four (4%) subjects. Presence of diabetic retinopathy was significantly associated with rural region (Odds ratio (OR): 3.52), duration of diabetes mellitus (OR: 1.08), fasting plasma glucose concentration (OR: 1.14), type of diabetes treatment (OR: 2.09), and marginally significantly, with hyperopic refractive error (OR: 1.13; P = 0.08). The stage of diabetic retinopathy was associated with rural region (P < 0.001), known duration of diabetes (P = 0.001), type of diabetes treatment (P = 0.001), concentrations of high-density lipoproteins (P = 0.004), and fasting glucose concentrations (P = 0.002)., Conclusions: Prevalence of diabetic retinopathy among adult diabetic Chinese was about 27.9%. The stage of retinopathy was mild in 75% of the subjects with diabetic retinopathy. Associated factors were diabetes duration, diabetic treatment type, low metabolic control, rural region, and marginally hyperopia.

Background: To assess the association between a retinopathy as defined by the Early Treatment of Diabetic Retinopathy Study (ETDRS) criteria, and mortality in a population-based setting., Methods: At baseline in 2001, the Beijing Eye Study examined 4,391 subjects for retinopathy lesions, with a detected frequency of 285/4391 (6.5%) subjects. Using fundus photographs, the retinopathy was graded according to the Early Treatment of Diabetic Retinopathy Study (ETDRS) criteria. The mean age was 56.05 +/- 10.51 years (range, 40-101 years). In 2006, all study participants were re-invited for a follow-up examination., Results: Out of the 4,391 subjects, 3,224 subjects (73.4%) returned for follow-up examination, while 140 subjects (3.2%) were dead and 1,027 subjects (23.4%) did not agree to be re-examined or had moved away. Mortality rate was significantly higher (P = 0.002; odds ratio [OR]: 2.20; 95% confidence intervals [CI]: 1.32, 3.67) in the 285 subjects with retinopathy (18/285 or 6.3 +/- 1.4%; 95%CI: 3.6%, 9.0%) than in the 4,106 participants without retinopathy (122/4,106 or 3.0 +/- 0.3% 95%CI: 2.4%, 3.6%). In binary logistic regression analysis, mortality was significantly associated with age (P < 0.001; OR: 1.10; 95%CI: 1.08, 1.12), gender (P = 0.006; OR: 0.61; 95%CI: 0.43, 0.86), rural versus urban region (P < 0.001; OR: 5.65; 95%CI: 3.81, 8.40), and presence of retinopathy (P = 0.005; OR: 2.13; 95%CI: 1.25, 3.62)., Conclusions: In addition to higher age, male gender, and living in a rural region, a retinopathy as defined by ETDRS criteria is a risk factor for an increased mortality in adult Chinese.