The color of the Iris in patients presenting at the Opthalmology unit University teaching hospital Lusaka,Zamba

Abstract

Background The iris is the coloured part around the black pupil. It is a flat structure and each iris is unique in its colour, patterns and texture. Its colour varies in different individuals, ethnic groups and is largely affected by geographical factors. The colour of the iris in the Zambian population is not known. Aims and objectives The study aimed at determining the Colour of the Iris in patients presenting to the Ophthalmology unit University Teaching Hospital (UTH), Lusaka, Zambia. Materials and Methods This was a cross sectional analytical study, done in Ophthalmology unit at UTH, from June to August, 2014. A total of 384 randomly sampled patients were physically examined for the colour of the Iris using the Martin-Schultz scale. Results Out of 384 participants, 372 had brown eyes representing 96.9% and 12 had black eyes representing 3.1%. The sex distribution among the 372 with brown eyes were 189 males and 183 females. Moreover, among the 12 participants with black eyes, 8 were females while 4 were males. It was also observed that refractive errors in 181 (47.1%) were the most common conditions in patients presenting at the UTH eye clinic, followed by cataract 77 (20%); diseases affecting the cornea and conjunctiva 67 (17.4 %) and glaucoma 59 (15.4%) respectively. Conclusion It was established that the most common eye colour in the Zambian population is Brown 272/384 (96.9%) followed by black 12/384 (3.1%). The most common eye conditions patients present with at the eye clinic were refractive errors 181 (47.1%); cataract 77 (20.0%), glaucoma 59 (15.4%) and diseases affecting the cornea and conjunctiva 67 (17.4%) which included uveitis, conjunctivitis, Trachoma and age related macular degeneration. . Keywords: Colour of the Iris, melanin, melanocyte