A LOCAL study on eye diseases among Malay Singaporeans has been extended to include Chinese and Indians.

The study began in 2004 with 3,280 Malays as subjects.

Eventually, 10,000 subjects from all three major races will be involved.

The aim is to undertake a comprehensive examination of the link between races and eye problems or diseases such as glaucoma, myopia and age-related macular degeneration.

The Singapore Eye Research Institute (Seri) also hopes to delve into whether genes, lifestyle or diet can put a person at risk of eye diseases.

Seri’s director, Professor Wong Tien Yin, who is also a senior consultant ophthalmologist at the Singapore National Eye Centre (SNEC), noted, for example, that blacks in America are four times more likely to develop glaucoma than white people there.

With the studies on Malay participants done in 2006, work began on 3,300 Indians the following year, and will end this June. About 3,300 Chinese will be picked over the next two years for the study.

Participation is voluntary.

The Chinese participants will be selected from the south-west part of the island. They will complete a questionnaire on their lifestyle and have their eyes tested for vision and pressure. Photos of the back and front of the eye will be taken.

They will also undergo a physical examination, including blood tests and measurements of their blood pressure and weight.

The findings on these Chinese participants will be compared with those from Los Angeles in the United States and Guangzhou in China.

Prof. Wong said: “ Singapore is perfect for doing this type of study as it is a ‘population lab’ with a mix of major racial groups in Asia.”

With the findings, the SNEC, Seri and other eye departments in hospitals plan to tailor a suite of prevention, screening and treatment programmes for each racial group, going by its respective set of risk factors.