Long-term Alcohol Consumption and Risk of Exfoliation Glaucoma or Glaucoma Suspect Status among United States Health Professionals

Purpose: To assess the association between intakes of total alcohol and individual alcoholic beverages and the incidence of exfoliation glaucoma/glaucoma suspect (XFG/XFGS) status. Design: Prospective cohort study. Participants: A total of 195 408 participants in the Nurses’ Health Study (1980–2018), the Health Professionals Follow-up Study (1986–2018), and the Nurses’ Health Study II (1991–2019) were followed biennially. Eligible participants at each 2-year risk period were ≧ 40 years and free of XFG/XFGS status with available data on diet and ophthalmic examination findings. Methods: Cumulatively averaged total (primary exposure) and individual alcoholic beverage (beer, wine, and liquor) intakes from validated dietary information every 2-4 years. Main Outcome Measures: Confirmed incident XFG/XFGS status using medical records. We used per-eye Cox proportional hazards models, accounting for intereye correlations, to estimate multivariate-adjusted relative risks (MVRRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Results: During 6 877 823 eye-years of follow-up, 705 eyes with XFG/XFGS status were documented. Greater total alcohol consumption was associated significantly with higher XFG/XFGS status risk: the MVRR for XFG/XFGS status for cumulatively averaged alcohol consumption of ≧15 g/day or more versus nondrinking was 1.55 (95% CI, 1.17–2.07; P = 0.02 for trend). Long- and short-term alcohol intake was associated significantly with XFG/XFGS status risk, with the strongest associations with cumulatively averaged alcohol intake as of 4 years before diagnosis (MVRR ≥ 15 g/day vs. nondrinking, 1.65; 95% CI, 1.25–2.18; P = 0.002 for trend). Compared with nondrinkers, consuming ≧ 3.6 drinks of beer, wine, or liquor per week was associated with the following MVRRs for XFG/XFGS status: 1.26 (95% CI, 0.89–1.77; P = 0.40 for trend), 1.30 (95% CI, 1.00–1.68; P = 0.15 for trend), and 1.46 (95% CI, 1.15–1.85; P = 0.01 for trend), respectively. We did not observe interactions by age, latitude, residential tier, or intakes of folate or vitamin A (P > 0.40 for interaction); however, the association between alcohol and XFG/XFGS status was suggestively stronger for those without a family history of glaucoma (P = 0.10 for interaction). Conclusions: Long-term alcohol consumption was associated with a higher risk of XFG/XFGS status. Our findings provide further clues regarding the XFG/XFGS etiology.