A new study published in the Journal of Ophthalmology is the first meta-analysis to attempt to ascertain the global prevalence of Fuchs' endothelial corneal dystrophy (FECD) in the adult population.
Overall, the authors estimated the global prevalence of FECD to be as high as 7.33%, with the highest figures reported in North America, where the prevalence rate of the disease peaked up to 21.62%.
Any limitations to the study?
The authors state that they found only a modest number of epidemiological studies on FECD, the majority of which were conducted in Asia. A full and representative coverage of all countries was not achieved.
Of note, the number of people > 30 years old with FECD worldwide is expected to increase from 300 million in 2020 to 415 million in 2050.
This mainly results from the expected growth in the number of aged people, which is anticipated to variably affect all continents.