Abstract
Purpose :
Studies have suggested that reduced levels of macular pigment (MP) may increase risk for developing age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Previous studies revealed significant variability between instruments currently used to measure MP levels in the clinic. Our aim was to determine if the same variability would be found in the commercially available MapcatSF using a young, healthy, population.
Methods :
Thirty five young healthy optometry students aged 19-30 years old were recruited from the Illinois College of Optometry. Macular pigment optical density (MPOD) was measured from the right eye using the MapcatSF. Data was collected from each subject over 6 sessions spanning 6 months. A single operator collected the data from each patient. Four measurements were taken at flicker frequencies of both 24 and 31 Hz during each session. Column statistics and ANOVA were done to compare the statistical significance of the results at each time point and over the entire course of the study.
Results :
Mean MPOD for the all of the subjects during the initial visit was 0.4135 ± 0.164 and 0.4372 ± 0.161 at the 6 month time point for a difference of 0.0237. There was no significant difference between the MPOD means at the 6 different time points. The mean standard deviation (SD) of the subject’s MPOD readings was 0.0264 ± 0.014 for the initial time point and 0.0156 ± 0.006 at the 6 month time point. The cohort mean SD decreased at each subsequent time point starting at the initial visit and culminating in the lowest SD at 6 months. There is a significant difference between the initial and 6 month time points (p<0.0001) determinerd by ANOVA, Bartlett’s test for equal variance, and Bonferroni’s multiple comparison test.
Conclusions :
It is becoming increasingly evident that MP plays an important role in ocular physiology and pathology. If it is going to be monitored with the possibility of diagnosing disease or altering treatment, the need for reliable measurements is imperative. From this limited study, it appears that the MapcatSF demonstrates such reliability and it increases the more the patient is tested, thus implicating a learning component. Further clinical studies are needed in order to aid the clinician in making the most informed decision for his/her patients regarding clinical care.
This is an abstract that was submitted for the 2017 ARVO Annual Meeting, held in Baltimore, MD, May 7-11, 2017.