Objective: To report on the high prevalence of pseudo-exfoliation syndrome and to suggest its possible link with glaucoma in Black Zimbabweans.
Design: Cross sectional.
Setting: Chivi District.
Subjects: A simple random sample of 148 blind people selected from a sampling frame of 886 blind people in Chivi district.
Main outcome measures: Prevalence of pseudo-exfoliation syndrome.
Results: Pseudo-exfoliation was found among people between 55 and 90 years old. Of the sampled population 7.4% had PXS. Out of 17 eyes, cataracts were found in 12, glaucoma in eight, and spontaneous dislocated lenses in two.
Conclusion: Pseudo-exfoliation is not rare in Chivi district and further research is needed to establish if it may be associated with glaucoma among Black Zimbabweans.