Relationship between macular pigment and visual acuity in eyes with early age-related macular degeneration

In this article, we highlight a method that probes the directional sensitivity of cones, in particular those in the fovea. Directional sensitivity is a unique property of cones, i.e. it is not shared by any other retinal element, and can be taken as a measure of the health of cones. In a group of healthy subjects, the directional reflection was 1.78%. In early age-related macular degeneration (AMD), despite a healthy-looking fovea, the mean directional reflection was 0.92%; in late AMD, the figure decreased further to 0.86%. These findings point to a malfunctioning of the outer segments. In addition, the method yields an estimate of the optical density of macular pigment. In early AMD, the macular pigment did not differ from normal; this finding did not point to a protecting role of macular pigment in AMD.

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Faculty Opinions recommendation of Pilot evaluation of short-term changes in macular pigment and retinal sensitivity in different phenotypes of early age-related macular degeneration after carotenoid supplementation.

Faculty Opinions – Post-Publication Peer Review of the Biomedical Literature ◽

10.3410/f.726706854.793526181 ◽

2016 ◽

Author(s):

Francesco Bandello ◽

Riccardo Sacconi

Keyword(s):

Macular Degeneration ◽

Macular Pigment ◽

Age Related Macular Degeneration ◽

Early Age ◽

Retinal Sensitivity ◽

Short Term ◽

Age Related ◽

Carotenoid Supplementation

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Effects of Lutein Supplementation on Macular Pigment Optical Density and Visual Acuity in Patients with Age-Related Macular Degeneration

Investigative Opthalmology & Visual Science ◽

10.1167/iovs.11-7522 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 52 (11) ◽

pp. 8174 ◽

Cited By ~ 82

Author(s):

Günther Weigert ◽

Semira Kaya ◽

Berthold Pemp ◽

Stefan Sacu ◽

Michael Lasta ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Visual Acuity ◽

Macular Degeneration ◽

Optical Density ◽

Macular Pigment ◽

Age Related Macular Degeneration ◽

Macular Pigment Optical Density ◽

Age Related

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Effect of Lutein and Zeaxanthin on Macular Pigment and Visual Function in Patients with Early Age-related Macular Degeneration

Ophthalmology ◽

10.1016/j.ophtha.2012.06.014 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 119 (11) ◽

pp. 2290-2297 ◽

Cited By ~ 76

Author(s):

Le Ma ◽

Shao-Fang Yan ◽

Yang-Mu Huang ◽

Xin-Rong Lu ◽

Fang Qian ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Macular Degeneration ◽

Visual Function ◽

Macular Pigment ◽

Age Related Macular Degeneration ◽

Early Age ◽

Age Related

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Supplementation with three macular carotenoids in patients with early stage age-related macular degeneration

Medicinski pregled ◽

10.2298/mpns1910291j ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 72 (9-10) ◽

pp. 291-296

Author(s):

Sandra Jovanovic ◽

Sofija Davidovic ◽

Aleksandar Miljkovic ◽

Milica Atanackovic-Krstonosic ◽

Darija Sazdanic ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Visual Acuity ◽

Macular Degeneration ◽

Contrast Sensitivity ◽

Early Stage ◽

Visual Quality ◽

Age Related Macular Degeneration ◽

Visual Performance ◽

Early Age ◽

Age Related ◽

Glare Sensitivity

Introduction. Macula lutea is the central part of the retina and it houses carotenoid macular pigments - lutein, zeaxanthin, and meso-zeaxanthin. It is considered that carotenoids can prevent or slow down the progression of the early age-related macular degeneration in some patients. Therefore, the aim of this study was to examine the effects of supplementation with all three macular pigments on vision quality in patients with early agerelated macular degeneration. Material and Methods. This prospective study included 15 patients (25 eyes in total) with early age-related macular degeneration. All visual tests - visual acuity, glare sensation and contrast sensitivity, were performed at baseline and after 6 months of continuous supplementation with 10 mg lutein, 2 mg zeaxanthin, and 10 mg mesozeaxanthin. Results. The results showed that glare sensitivity improved in 20% of cases. Most of the examined eyes (76%) presented without visual acuity deterioration. Similar results were obtained for the contrast sensitivity test, where in 80% of cases vision quality remained stable or improved. There were no statistically significant differences between average values of examined parameters at baseline and after 6 months of supplementation. Conclusion. In most of the examined eyes (over 75%) visual quality remained stable or improvement of measured parameters was observed. This type of supplementation may improve visual performance or its preservation in patients with early age-related macular degeneration.

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