Prevalence of pigment dispersion syndrome in a population undergoing glaucoma screening

The prevalence of pigment dispersion syndrome is thought to be relatively uncommon. Extrapolation of prevalences from glaucoma practices would suggest about 25,000 to 220,000 persons in the United States, an order of magnitude spread. By performing two population screenings that included slit-lamp examination, we detected pigment dispersion syndrome in 18 of 934 individuals. Sixteen of these were white, so that the prevalence of pigment dispersion syndrome in this group was 2.45%. We suggest that many more persons than previously believed may be at risk to develop pigment dispersion.