LAUSR

PURPOSE To determine the 6-year incidence of early and late age-related macular degeneration (AMD) in a Singaporean Malay population and to validate the Age-Related Eye Disease Study (AREDS) simplified severity scale in Asians. DESIGN Prospective, population cohort study. PARTICIPANTS The Singapore Malay Eye Study baseline participants (age, ≥40 years; 2006-2008) were followed up in 2011 through 2013, and 1901 of 3280 of eligible participants (72.1%) took part. METHODS Fundus photographs were graded using the Wisconsin AMD grading system. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Incidence of early and late AMD. RESULTS Gradable fundus photographs were available for 1809 participants who attended both baseline and 6-year follow-up examinations. The age-standardized incidences of early and late AMD were 5.89% (95% confidence interval [CI], 4.81-7.16) and 0.76% (95% CI, 0.42-1.29), respectively. The 5-year age-standardized incidence of early AMD (calculated based on the 6-year incidence) was lower in our population (5.58%; 95% CI, 4.43-7.01) compared with the Beaver Dam Eye Study population (8.19%). The incidence of late AMD in our population was similar to that of the Beaver Dam Eye Study population (0.98% [95% CI, 0.49-1.86] vs. 0.91%), the Blue Mountains Eye Study population (1.10% [95% CI, 0.52-9.56] vs. 1.10%), and the Hisayama Study population (1.09% [95% CI, 0.54-4.25] vs. 0.84%). The incidence of late AMD increased markedly with increasing baseline AREDS score (step 0, 0.23%; step 4, 9.09%). CONCLUSIONS This study documented the incidence of early and late AMD in a Malay population. The AREDS simplified severity scale is useful in predicting the risk of late AMD development in Asians.