The prevalence of anterior blepharitis in an elderly population of Iran; The Tehran geriatric eye study.

PURPOSE

To determine the age and sex-standardized prevalence and risk factors of anterior blepharitis in a geriatric population in "…".

METHODS

This population-based study was conducted on the elderly population (over 60 years of age) of Tehran, the capital of "…" in 2019. Examinations included visual acuity assessment, refraction, and complete slit lamp examination. After the diagnosis of anterior blepharitis, its type (staphylococcal vs. seborrheic) was also determined. Multiple logistic regression was used to determine the risk factors of the disease.

RESULTS

3310 individuals participated in this study. The data of 3284 participants were available for this report. The mean age of the participants was 68.6 ± 24.5 years, and (57.8 %) were female. Age and sex-standardized prevalence of anterior blepharitis was 33.5 % (95 % CI: 30.6-36.5%) of which 96.5 % were bilateral. The prevalence of seborrheic and staphylococcal types was 22.4 % (95 % CI: 19.9-25.2%) and 11.3 % (95 % CI: 9.2-13.5%), respectively. According to the multiple logistic regression, the prevalence of anterior blepharitis was positively related to age over 80 years (P < 0.001) and male gender (P < 0.001), and inversely related to education level (P = 0.033). No significant relationship was found between anterior blepharitis and other variables including systemic hypertension, diabetes mellitus, hyperlipidemia, smoking, socioeconomic status, and history of the previous eye examination. Sex had the greatest effect on developing anterior blepharitis (standardized coefficient: 0.325).

CONCLUSION

The results of this study showed a relatively high prevalence of anterior blepharitis in the elderly population which requires special attention of the health system to inform and control this disease through continuous training of the media and regional health centers.