Abstract
Purpose: :
To investigate the association of age–related macular degeneration (AMD) with plasma Homocysteine (tHcy), vitamin B12, folate and Asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA) status and other risk factors associated with AMD.
Methods: :
214 AMD cases were recruited from an ophthalmology clinic and 190 population–based and age– (to within 5 years) and sex–matched controls were recruited from a health centre. Non–fasting blood samples were analysed for tHcy, vitamin B12, folate and ADMA. In addition all participants had fundus photography taken and height, weight and blood pressure measurements. Cardiovascular history, smoking status, history of hypertension and hypercholesterolaemia were recorded. Logistic regression was used to investigate the relationships between serum parameters and case–control status corrected for potential confounding variables.
Results: :
ADMA and folate levels were significantly higher in AMD cases than controls in univariate analyses (p<0.001, p=0.003) though these were not significant in multivariate models. No significant difference in tHcy was noted between cases and controls (p=0.519) though tHcy levels were found to be significantly higher in subjects with a history of ischaemic heart disease (IHD) compared to those with no history of IHD (p=0.015). Age, BMI, smoking, and history of IHD and hypercholesterolaemia were identified as risk factors for AMD.
Conclusions: :
This study did not support an association between elevated plasma homocysteine and AMD. The role of folate and ADMA warrants further investigation.
Keywords: age–related macular degeneration • nutritional factors • clinical (human) or epidemiologic studies: risk factor assessment