Central corneal thickness among Aboriginal people attending eye clinics in remote South Australia.

PURPOSE: To determine the central corneal thickness (CCT) and its demographic associations among Aboriginal people attending eye clinics in remote South Australia. METHODS: A clinic-based cross-sectional study was conducted involving opportunistic sampling of patients. Eligible participants underwent measurement of CCT by ultrasound pachymetry. The results were compared with a group of Caucasian control patients. RESULTS: All patients (189) who were invited to participate in the study had their CCT measured. The mean age was 44.8 +/- 14.5 years, and women comprised 57.7% of the sample. The control group consisted of 115 Caucasian participants. The mean age was 47.1 +/- 14.8 years, and women accounted for 55.7% of the sample. Mean CCT for Aboriginal participants was 514.9 +/- 30.5 microm in the right eye and 515.6 +/- 30.5 microm in the left eye (t = 1.1, P = 0.3). Mean right CCT for Caucasian participants was 544.6 +/- 31.9 microm and mean left CCT in this group was 547.1 +/- 32.2 microm (t = 4.6, P < 0.001). There was a significant difference between the right (t = 8.4, P < 0.001) and left (t = 8.8, P < 0.001) CCT of Aboriginal and Caucasian participants. CONCLUSIONS: The CCT among Aboriginal patients attending eye clinic in remote South Australia was significantly thinner than that of a Caucasian control group. Thinner corneas among this group of Aboriginal patients may indicate a need to adjust intraocular pressure according to CCT and to be more vigilant for glaucoma.

Distance refractive error among Aboriginal people attending eye clinics in remote South Australia.

PURPOSE: To determine the prevalence of distance refractive error among Aboriginal people attending eye clinics in remote South Australia. METHODS: A clinic-based cross-sectional study was conducted that involved opportunistic sampling of Aboriginal people attending eye clinics in remote South Australia. There were 189 individuals who were invited to participate in the study all of whom underwent ophthalmic examination. This examination included measurement of pinhole-corrected visual acuity and non-cycloplegic autorefraction. RESULTS: Automated refractive error examinations were performed on 148 people within this sample. The mean age was 44.8 +/- 14.5 years and women comprised 57.7% of the sample. The overall mean refractive error was -0.01 +/- 1.8 D (SD). The prevalence of myopia (spherical equivalent (SE) < -0.5 D), high myopia (SE less than or equal to -6.0 D), hypermetropia (SE > 0.5 D), astigmatism (cylinder at least -0.5 D) and anisometropia (difference in SE of >0.5 D) was 31.1%, 0.7%, 33.1%, 55.8% and 45.9%, respectively. Further analyses revealed significant age-related trends with both myopia and hypermetropia. There were no gender associations with any form of refractive error. Of those people with clinically significant refractive error, 51/148 (34%), only four people owned distance spectacles. CONCLUSIONS: There continues to be a level of uncorrected distance refractive error within these patients. This represents a need to screen for refractive error among Aboriginal people in remote locations and to provide them with appropriate spectacle correction.