ASSOCIATION BETWEEN SKIN COLOR AND INTRAOCULAR-PRESSURE IN AFRICAN-AMERICANS

African Americans have a higher prevalence of elevated blood pressure and a higher prevalence of increased intraocular pressure (IOP). The b lood pressure of African Americans has been found to be related to ski n color. This study evaluated whether IOP was related to skin color. W e measured IOP using a Tonopen and skin darkness using a spectrocolori meter in 213 African Americans. Seventy patients were identified as sy stemic hypertensives. Spearman correlation coefficients were calculate d to compare IOP and skin darkness. Mean IOP among hypertensives was 1 7.7 +/- 3.6 mmHg and among normotensives was 17.7 +/- 3.8 mmHg. Mean I OP for the whole sample was 17.7 +/- 3.7 mmHg. No significant correlat ions were found between skin darkness and IOP among the normotensive a nd hypertensive groups (p = 0.52 and 0.44) nor for the sample as a who le (p = 0.33). Skin darkness as a measure of skin color in this sample population did not predict those subjects with higher IOPs.