Prevalence of keratoconus in refractive surgery practice population in North Macedonia

Purpose: To determine the prevalence of keratoconus (KC) in relation to ethnicity in N. Macedonia. Methods: This was a cross-sectional, interventional retrospective study. Chart reviews were performed for all new patients attending between January 2016 and January 2020 at the Sistina Ophthalmology Hospital in Skopje. All patients were screened, KC diagnosis and classification was based on the corneal topography. Ethnicity and gender classifications were according to patients’ self-opinions. Results: A total of 2812 patients charts reviewed. The mean age was 31.71 years (SD, ±9.73), 1209 (43%) were male. 2050 (72.9%) declared themselves as Macedonians, 649 (23.1%) Albanians, 76 (2.7%) Turks and 37 (1.3%) in other ethnicities. Differences in age between the ethnic groups was statistically significant (𝑥2=90.225, pConclusion: The prevalence of KC at a refractive surgery practice in N.Macedonia is much higher compared with general population and similar to the prevalence in Middle East Asia. Nationwide screening programs are needed to diagnose the disease earlier.