To the Editor.
—In their editorial published in the June 1988 issue of the Archives, Cowan et al1 pointed out the increased risk of visual loss from open angle glaucoma among the black population and stated the need for well-designed epidemiologic studies to identify prevalence and risk factors for the disease. They suggested that the relatively isolated island populations of the Caribbean provide a unique opportunity to study glaucoma in blacks, as well as the impact of ethnicity and environment on the disease. We are writing to report on the Barbados Eye Study, sponsored by the National Eye Institute, Bethesda, Md, which is addressing the issues discussed by Cowan et al.In September 1986, a pilot project was initiated to evaluate the feasibility of the Barbados Eye Study, a population-based epidemiologic study of glaucoma and other major eye diseases in Barbados.2 Results of the pilot project confirmed a