Glaucoma affects black, Asian-American women in higher numbers, study shows

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Female blacks and Asian-Americans under 50 years of age are at elevated risk of developing primary open-angle glaucoma compared to other groups, according to analysis by the Vision Council of America. In addition, women over 40 years old are almost twice as likely as men to have primary open-angle glaucoma, regardless of ethnicity, the analysis found.

The study was conducted using published medical literature, the 2000 U.S. Census and information from the National Eye Institute, according to a press release from the Vision Council of America (VCA). While age is a significant risk factor for primary open-angle glaucoma, up to 25% of people with the disease in some population groups are younger than 50.

Certain ethnic groups in the United States are at a disproportionately higher risk for glaucoma, the study found. Black people over the age of 40 are more than twice as likely to have glaucoma as whites, according to the VCA. Also, Asian-Americans older than 40 have the second most frequent incidence of glaucoma, but they are most likely on a percentage basis to have glaucoma in their 40s. The study found that Hispanics are least likely of the four groups to have glaucoma, but in the under-50-age group of Hispanic men are nearly three times more likely to have glaucoma than women, according to research.