The Prevalence and Associations of Peripheral Retinopathy: Baseline Study of Guangzhou Office Computer Workers

• Published in: Journal of ophthalmology Vol. 2018; no. 2018; pp. 1 - 6
• Main Authors: Zhang, Shaochong, Peng, Manjuan, Liu, Rongjiao, Zhou, Xuezhi, Huang, Wenbin, Wei, Yantao, Zuo, Yajing, Zhang, Ting, Zhong, Lili
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Cairo, Egypt Hindawi Publishing Corporation 01.01.2018; Hindawi; John Wiley & Sons, Inc; Wiley
• Subjects: Age; Analysis; Computer use; Gender differences; Information technology workers; Males; Optic nerve; Power supply; Variance analysis; Work stations; Workers; United Kingdom; China; Japan; Germany
• ISSN: 2090-004X; 2090-0058
• DOI: 10.1155/2018/2358690

Purpose. To determine the prevalence of peripheral retinopathy and its associated risk factors among a sample of Guangzhou office computer workers. Methods. A cross-sectional study of Guangzhou Chinese computer workstations and operators in different departments and units of the Guangzhou Power Supply Bureau, China, in 2016. Peripheral retinopathy was recorded and analyzed using a scanning laser ophthalmoscope (SLO; Optos, Daytona, United Kingdom) and slit-lamp microscopy combined with a three-mirror contact lens. Results. The 1934 eyes of 967 subjects (513 females and 454 males) were included in this study. In total, 79.1% of the eyes were myopic in workers aged 20–29 years, 72.9% in workers aged 30–39 years, 62.2% in workers aged 40–49 years, and 43.4% in workers aged 50–59 years (p<0.001). Most eyes had optic nerve crescents (81.3%). Various peripheral degenerations were found: 7 eyes (0.4%) had microcystoid degeneration, 40 (2.1%) had peripheral pigmentary degeneration, 87 (4.5%) had lattice degeneration, and 4 (0.2%) had snail-track degeneration. Nineteen (1.0%) eyes had paving-stone degeneration, 11 (0.6%) eyes had a retinal hole or tear, and 16 (0.8%) eyes had chorioretinal degeneration. Multivariate regression confirmed that greater axial length (OR: 1.18 (1.03, 1.35), p=0.012) and more serious spherical equivalent (OR: 0.82 (0.77, 0.88), p<0.001) were significant risk factors for peripheral retinal changes. Conclusion. Peripheral retinal degenerative changes were found in a larger proportion of younger computer workers than older ones. Myopia is occurring in younger and younger people, accompanied by peripheral retinal degeneration.