Myocilin variations and familial glaucoma in Taxiarchis, a small Greek village

PURPOSE: To initiate a prospective study of glaucoma in a Greek village reported over 30 years ago to have several large families with primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG). METHODS: A random group of 126 villagers from Taxiarchis, Greece was examined in the village community center. The detailed evaluation included ophthalmic and general history, measurement of blood pressure, intraocular pressure (IOP), and central corneal thickness (CCT) as well as evaluation of the optic nerve status. RESULTS: The incidence of glaucoma approached 18% in this small isolated village. Myocilin variants were present in almost half of the individuals screened with Arg76Lys and Thr377Met being the most common finding (25% and 17%, respectively). Over half of the individuals with the Thr377Met mutation were diagnosed with glaucoma. Two of these patients were homozygous for the Thr377Met mutation. Three individuals with the Arg76Lys polymorphism had glaucoma; however, two of these individuals also had the Thr377Met mutation. Only two patients with pseudoexfoliation were identified. CONCLUSIONS: The incidence of glaucoma and the Thr377Met MYOC mutation in this population is much higher than that reported for other European populations.