Ocular Diseases on Naru Island, Japan: a Seven-year Survey

Purpose: To examine the characteristics over seven years of ocular diseases in a closed society on Naru Island in Nagasaki Prefecture. Subjects: Annual eye examinations were performed during routine physical examinations on Naru Island, Japan Results and Discussion: Pterygium appeared to increase with age. The prevalence of cataract was higher in woman than in man. Cataract was more prevalent in those with pterygium than in those without one. The prevalence of pseudoexfoliation increased with age, and it was greater in those with cataract than in those without one. Conclusions: The incidence of degenerative and age-related diseases in this population followed for seven years showed a tendency to increase with age. of ocular diseases, prevalence of ocular diseases Island annually from 1995 to 2002. Naru Island is an isolated offshore island in Nagasaki Prefecture in western Kyushu, Japan. It is one of many isolated islands where the residents form a socially, historically, genetically and culturally specific society. Naru Island has a population of about 4,000 with no ophthalmolo-gists. The Naru Island Eye Study is a population-based study of ocular diseases, conducted by the Naru Town Office and supported by the Department of Ophthalmology of Nagasaki University Hospital. We examined for 7 years from 1995 to 2002 and recorded the prevalence, characteristics, and natural course of ocular diseases. We can study not only the prevalence but also the incidence of eye diseases. While association with risk factors can be estimated by cross-sectional data, incidence data are necessary to develop insights regarding potential causative factors. We studied the cumulative incidence of ocular diseases observed in the population from 1995 to 2002. Such a study is rare even in the above-mentioned population-based studies.