Skip to main content
PMC home page
The BMJ logoLink to The BMJ
. 1992 Oct 17;305(6859):933–936. doi: 10.1136/bmj.305.6859.933

Demand incidence and episode rates of ophthalmic disease in a defined urban population.

J H Sheldrick 1, S A Vernon 1, A Wilson 1, S J Read 1
PMCID: PMC1883573  PMID: 1458075

Abstract

OBJECTIVES--To estimate demand incidence and episode rates of ophthalmic disease in a defined urban population over one year. DESIGN--Study of patients presenting with eye problems to general practice and eye casualty department. SETTING--General practice and ophthalmic services in west Nottingham. SUBJECTS--36,018 people from the combined practice lists of 17 Nottingham general practitioners. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES--Ophthalmic disorder, age and sex of patient, and where presented. RESULTS--587 consultations were recorded for ophthalmic problems, 1771 with general practitioners and 816 with eye casualty. Most consultations to general practice were by females (1066 (60%)), whereas men aged 15-44 accounted for most work in eye casualty. These men commonly presented with trauma. Infective conjunctivitis, the commonest condition, had an episode rate of 13.5/1000 population/year. Demand incidence for cataracts was 1.9/1000 population/year. Demand incidence for chronic conditions increased with age. CONCLUSIONS--As the average age of the population increases demand for ophthalmic services will rise. Planning and provision of resources to meet this increased demand should be considered now.

Full text

PDF
933

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Bankes J. L., Perkins E. S., Tsolakis S., Wright J. E. Bedford glaucoma survey. Br Med J. 1968 Mar 30;1(5595):791–796. doi: 10.1136/bmj.1.5595.791. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Brennan M. E., Knox E. G. The incidence of cataract and its clinical presentation. Community Health (Bristol) 1975 Jul-Aug;7(1):13–20. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Brittain G. P., Austin D. J., Kelly S. P. A prospective survey to determine sources and diagnostic accuracy of glaucoma referrals. Health Trends. 1988 May;20(2):43–44. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Chiapella A. P., Rosenthal A. R. One year in an eye casualty clinic. Br J Ophthalmol. 1985 Nov;69(11):865–870. doi: 10.1136/bjo.69.11.865. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Dart J. K. Eye disease at a community health centre. Br Med J (Clin Res Ed) 1986 Dec 6;293(6560):1477–1480. doi: 10.1136/bmj.293.6560.1477. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Edwards R. S. Ophthalmic emergencies in a district general hospital casualty department. Br J Ophthalmol. 1987 Dec;71(12):938–942. doi: 10.1136/bjo.71.12.938. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Fraser R. C., Clayton D. G. The accuracy of age-sex registers, practice medical records and family practitioner committee registers. J R Coll Gen Pract. 1981 Jul;31(228):410–419. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Gibson J. M., Rosenthal A. R., Lavery J. A study of the prevalence of eye disease in the elderly in an English community. Trans Ophthalmol Soc U K. 1985;104(Pt 2):196–203. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Harrison R. J., Wild J. M., Hobley A. J. Referral patterns to an ophthalmic outpatient clinic by general practitioners and ophthalmic opticians and the role of these professionals in screening for ocular disease. BMJ. 1988 Nov 5;297(6657):1162–1167. doi: 10.1136/bmj.297.6657.1162. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Jay J. L., Devlin M. L. The increasing frequency of surgery for cataract. Eye (Lond) 1990;4(Pt 1):127–131. doi: 10.1038/eye.1990.16. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Jones N. P., Hayward J. M., Khaw P. T., Claoué C. M., Elkington A. R. Function of an ophthalmic "accident and emergency" department: results of a six month survey. Br Med J (Clin Res Ed) 1986 Jan 18;292(6514):188–190. doi: 10.1136/bmj.292.6514.188. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Kahn H. A., Leibowitz H. M., Ganley J. P., Kini M. M., Colton T., Nickerson R. S., Dawber T. R. The Framingham Eye Study. I. Outline and major prevalence findings. Am J Epidemiol. 1977 Jul;106(1):17–32. doi: 10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a112428. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Podgor M. J., Leske M. C., Ederer F. Incidence estimates for lens changes, macular changes, open-angle glaucoma and diabetic retinopathy. Am J Epidemiol. 1983 Aug;118(2):206–212. doi: 10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a113628. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Poggio E. C., Glynn R. J., Schein O. D., Seddon J. M., Shannon M. J., Scardino V. A., Kenyon K. R. The incidence of ulcerative keratitis among users of daily-wear and extended-wear soft contact lenses. N Engl J Med. 1989 Sep 21;321(12):779–783. doi: 10.1056/NEJM198909213211202. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Port M. J., Pope C. A. Referrals and notifications by British optometrists. Ophthalmic Physiol Opt. 1988;8(3):323–326. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Shaw D. E., Gibson J. M., Rosenthal A. R. A year in a general ophthalmic outpatient department in England. Arch Ophthalmol. 1986 Dec;104(12):1843–1846. doi: 10.1001/archopht.1986.01050240117052. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Sheldrick J. H., Vernon S. A., Wilson A. Study of diagnostic accord between general practitioners and an ophthalmologist. BMJ. 1992 Apr 25;304(6834):1096–1098. doi: 10.1136/bmj.304.6834.1096. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. Vernon S. A. Analysis of all new cases seen in a busy regional centre ophthalmic casualty department during 24-week period. J R Soc Med. 1983 Apr;76(4):279–282. doi: 10.1177/014107688307600408. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from BMJ : British Medical Journal are provided here courtesy of BMJ Publishing Group

RESOURCES