PREVALENCE OF AGE-MACULAR DEGENERATION IN PERSONS OF WORKING AGE WHO APPLIED TO PARTICIPATE IN WORK IN ACTION CONDITIONS IONIZING RADIATION: PRELIMINARY RESULTS

Abstract

In recent decades, several large-scale epidemiological surveys of the eyes have been conducted to determine the global prevalence of retinal degenerative diseases (for example, the Blue Mountains Eye Study). The results of such studies were evaluated several decades, and the studies themselves required significant material resources. Such large-scale projects have not been carried out in Ukraine. Objective of the work is to study the prevalence of age-related macular degeneration in a pilot group of non-irradiated persons of working age to determine the suitability of using the results for further epidemiological studies in Ukraine. Materials and methods. A retrospective-prospective analysis of the prevalence of degenerative diseases of the retina in a pilot group of persons who underwent an in-depth examination, as they claimed to participate in works in harmful conditions (with ionizing radiation) was carried out. The results of primary ophthalmological examinations of 1,064 people, conducted between January 18, 2007 and October 29, 2009, were randomly selected. The age of the examinees at the time of examination ranged from 18.94 to 67.49 years, the number of persons aged 18 to 30, 30 to 40, and 40 to 50 years was approximately the same. The results of a standardized ophthalmological examination were used. Results. In the pilot group of people in working age, the prevalence of age-related macular degeneration was 196.4 per 1,000 people. Hazard analysis showed that the relative risk of age-related macular degeneration increased with age and was 1.14 (95% CI 1.07–1.21) for individuals aged 30–39 years; in comparison with persons under the age of 30; 1.3 (95% CI 1.21–1.41) – for persons aged 40–49; 1.3 (95% CI 1.18–1.52) – for persons aged 50–59; 1.86 (95% CI 1.0–3.47) – for persons over 60 years of age. The odds ratio (OR) of having age-related macular degeneration for those aged 30–39 years compared with those younger than 30 years was 3.04 (95% CI 1.79–5.15); for persons aged 40–49 years – 5.49 (95% CI 3.31–9.09); for persons aged 50–59 years – 6.04 (95% CI 3.36–10.88); for persons aged 50–59 years – 6.04 (95% CI 3.36–10.88) and for persons older than 60 years – 13.71 (95% CI 3.68–51.15), p in all cases < 0.0001. Conclusions. It was established that the prevalence of age-related macular degeneration in non-irradiated individuals determined in the pilot group was high and statistically significantly increased with age. It is shown that the results of primary ophthalmological examinations of a pilot group of persons who applied for participation in works in harmful conditions (with ionizing radiation) are suitable for epidemiological studies of the frequency and course of degenerative retinal diseases in persons of working age in Ukraine. The obtained results are important for practical medicine, as they will allow us to assess the prospects needs for medical care in the secondary and tertiary care. Key words: Chornobyl disaster, ionizing radiation, age-related macular degeneration, prevalence, retina, pigment epithelium, macula.