Eye Diseases on the Increase

Researchers blame growing health-care burden on aging baby boomers

FRIDAY, Sept. 12, 2003 (HealthDayNews) -- The number of elderly Americans with common age-related eye diseases has increased significantly over the past decade, says a study in the September issue of the Archives of Ophthalmology.

The Duke University-led study analyzed a national sample of Medicare beneficiaries aged 65 and older and recorded the incidence of diabetic retinitis, glaucoma and age-related macular degeneration. The study subjects were followed from 1991 to 1999 or until they died.

Of the 20,325 Medicare beneficiaries in 1991, 10,476 were available for analysis in 1999.

Between 1991 and 1999, the prevalence of diabetes mellitus increased from 14.5 percent to 25.6 percent. The cases of diabetic retinopathy in that group increased from 6.9 percent to 17.4 percent.

Over that same period, cases of glaucoma increased from 4.6 percent to 13.8 percent and the prevalence of age-related macular degeneration increased from 5 percent to 27.1 percent.

Overall, the proportion of people with at least one of the three diseases increased from 13.4 percent to 45.4 percent between 1991 and 1999.

"The continued aging of the baby boomer population will result in an even greater burden of eye disease in the United States than previous cross-sectional estimates indicated," the study authors write.

"This increased burden has important implications for the nation's public health, for resource allocation, and for the financing of vision care in the future. As more elderly individuals live longer, we may see a rise in the prevalence of chronic eye diseases that will significantly challenge our ability to provide care."

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