Association between open-angle glaucoma and Alzheimer’s disease in Sweden: a long-term population-based follow-up study

BACKGROUND: Open-angle glaucoma (OAG) and Alzheimer’s disease (AD) are two age-related neurodegenerative diseases of significant public health importance. Epidemiological studies have indicated that there might be an association between the disorders. METHODS: Predictors of AD, including mixed and unspecified dementia, were analysed in a cohort of 712 residents aged 65–74 years, examined in a population survey in the rural district of Tierp, Sweden, from 1984 to 1986. To expand the sample size, 821 people were recruited by means of glaucoma case records established at the Eye Department in Tierp from 1978 to 2007. In this way, the cohort comprised 1,533 people, representing more than 21,000 person-years at risk. Medical records were reviewed to identify subjects diagnosed with dementia. Those with a follow-up duration shorter than 2 years were excluded. RESULTS: By the conclusion of the study, in August 2020, 307 subjects had received a diagnosis of AD, including mixed and unspecified dementia. Of these cases, 55 were affected with definite OAG at baseline. Higher age and ischemic heart disease were the only predictors of AD identified. In multivariate analysis, adjusting for age, participation in the population survey and competing events, no association was found between OAG and AD (hazard ratio 1.08; 95% confidence interval: 0.80–1.47). CONCLUSION: In this long-term follow-up study of subjects aged 65–74 years old in Sweden, OAG was not associated with AD.