The Age-Related Eye Disease Study 2 (AREDS2) Research Group * IMPORTANCE The Age-Related Eye Disease Study (AREDS) formulation for the treatment of age-related macular degeneration (AMD) contains vitamin C, vitamin E, beta carotene, and zinc with copper. The Age-Related Eye Disease Study 2 (AREDS2) assessed the value of substituting lutein/zeaxanthin in the AREDS formulation because of the demonstrated risk for lung cancer from beta carotene in smokers and former smokers and because lutein and zeaxanthin are important components in the retina.OBJECTIVE To further examine the effect of lutein/zeaxanthin supplementation on progression to late AMD. DESIGN, SETTING, PARTICIPANTSThe Age-Related Eye Disease Study 2 is a multicenter, double-masked randomized trial of 4203 participants, aged 50 to 85 years, at risk for developing late AMD; 66% of patients had bilateral large drusen and 34% had large drusen and late AMD in 1 eye. INTERVENTIONSIn addition to taking the original or a variation of the AREDS supplement, participants were randomly assigned in a factorial design to 1 of the following 4 groups: placebo; lutein/zeaxanthin, 10 mg/2 mg; omega-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty 3 acids, 1.0 g; or the combination. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES Documented development of late AMD by central, masked grading of annual retinal photographs or by treatment history.RESULTS In exploratory analysis of lutein/zeaxanthin vs no lutein/zeaxanthin, the hazard ratio of the development of late AMD was 0.90 (95% CI, 0.82-0.99; P = .04). Exploratory analyses of direct comparison of lutein/zeaxanthin vs beta carotene showed hazard ratios of 0.82 (95% CI, 0.69-0.96; P = .02) for development of late AMD, 0.78 (95% CI, 0.64-0.94; P = .01) for development of neovascular AMD, and 0.94 (95% CI, 0.70-1.26; P = .67) for development of central geographic atrophy. In analyses restricted to eyes with bilateral large drusen at baseline, the direct comparison of lutein/zeaxanthin vs beta carotene showed hazard ratios of 0.76 (95% CI, 0.61-0.96; P = .02) for progression to late AMD, 0.65 (95% CI, 0.49-0.85; P = .002) for neovascular AMD, and 0.98 (95% CI, 0.69-1.39; P = .91) for central geographic atrophy. CONCLUSION AND RELEVANCEThe totality of evidence on beneficial and adverse effects from AREDS2 and other studies suggests that lutein/zeaxanthin could be more appropriate than beta carotene in the AREDS-type supplements. TRIAL REGISTRATION clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT00345176

Purpose We investigate whether ocular and person-based characteristics are associated with dark adaptation (DA) measured using the AdaptRx™ device (Apeliotus Technologies, Atlanta, GA). Design Cross-sectional, single-center, observational study. Participants 116 participants >50 years with a range in age-related macular degeneration (AMD) severity. Methods Participants underwent best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) testing, ophthalmoscopic examination and multimodal imaging. Presence of reticular pseudodrusen (RPD) was assessed by masked grading of fundus images and confirmed with OCT. Eyes were also graded for AMD features (drusen, pigmentary changes, late AMD) to generate a person-based AMD severity groups. One eye was designated the study eye for DA testing using the AdaptRx™ device. Nonparametric statistical testing was performed on all comparisons. Main Outcome Measure The primary outcome of this study was the rod-intercept time (RIT) which is defined as the time for a participant's visual sensitivity to recover to a stimulus intensity of 5 × 10−3 cd/m2 (a decrease of 3 log units), or until a maximum test duration of 40 minutes was reached. Results A total of 116 study eyes in 116 participants (mean age=75.4±9.4 years, 58% female) were analyzed. Increased RIT was significantly associated with increasing age (r=0.34, p=0.0002), decreasing BCVA (r=−0.54, p<0.0001), pseudophakia (p=0.03), decreasing subfoveal choroidal thickness (r=−0.27, p=0.003). Study eyes with RPD (15/116, 13%) had a significantly greater mean RIT compared to eyes without RPD in any AMD severity group (p<0.02 for all comparisons) with 80% reaching the DA test ceiling. Conclusion Impairments in DA increase with age, worse visual acuity, presence of RPD, AMD severity and decreased subfoveal choroidal thickness. Analysis of covariance found the multivariable model that best fit our data included age, AMD group, and presence of RPD (R2=0.56) with the presence of RPD conferring the largest parameter estimate.

SUMMARY Age related macular degeneration (AMD) is the leading cause of irreversible blindness in the elderly population worldwide. While recent studies have demonstrated strong genetic associations of single nucleotide polymorphisms within a number of genes and AMD, other modes of regulation are also likely to play a role in its etiology. We identified a significantly decreased level of methylation on the IL17RC promoter in AMD patients. Further, we showed that hypomethylation of the IL17RC promoter in AMD patients led to an elevated expression of its protein and mRNA in peripheral blood as well as in the affected retina and choroid, suggesting that the DNA methylation pattern and expression of IL17RC may potentially serve as a biomarker for the diagnosis of AMD and likely plays a role in disease pathogenesis.

Serum chemokines were significantly elevated in patients with at least severe nonproliferative diabetic retinopathy compared with those who had less severe retinopathy. Elevated levels of the chemokines and cell adhesion molecules were also identified in eyes of a donor with ischemic diabetic retinopathy. These findings provide evidence to support the role of inflammation in the pathogenesis of diabetic retinopathy.

Objective-To describe the natural history of eyes with drusenoid pigment epithelial detachments (DPED) associated with age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Design-Multi-center clinic-based prospective cohort study.Participants-Among 4757 participants enrolled in the Age-Related Eye Disease Study (AREDS), 255 were identified as having DPED in at least one eye and having 5 or more years of follow-up after the initial detection of the DPED.Methods-Baseline and annual fundus photographs were evaluated for the evolution of the fundus features and the development of advanced AMD in the forms of central geographic atrophy (CGA) or neovascular (NV) AMD. Kaplan-Meier analyses of progression to advanced AMD and of moderate vision loss (≥15 letters compared with baseline) were performed.Main Outcome Measures-Rate of progression to advanced AMD and change in visual acuity from baseline (in terms of mean letters lost and proportion losing ≥15 letters).Results-A total of 311 eyes (from 255 participants) with DPED were followed for a median follow-up time of 8 years subsequent to the initial detection of a DPED. Of the 282 eyes that did not have advanced AMD at baseline, advanced AMD developed within 5 years in 119 eyes (42%) (19% progressing to CGA and 23% to NV-AMD). In the remaining eyes that did not develop advanced AMD (n = 163), progressive fundus changes, typified by the development of calcified drusen and pigmentary changes, were detected. Visual decline was prominent among study eyes, with Publisher's Disclaimer: This is a PDF file of an unedited manuscript that has been accepted for publication. As a service to our customers we are providing this early version of the manuscript. The manuscript will undergo copyediting, typesetting, and review of the resulting proof before it is published in its final citable form. Please note that during the production process errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain. NIH Public Access Author ManuscriptOphthalmology. Author manuscript; available in PMC 2011 March 1. Published in final edited form as:Ophthalmology. Conclusion-The natural history of eyes containing DPED is characterized by a high rate of progression to both CGA and NV-AMD. Among eyes not progressing advanced AMD, progressive development of pigmentary changes and calcified drusen were observed. Decline of visual acuity is a common outcome, with or without progression to advanced forms of AMD.

Objective To describe the long-term effects (10 years) of the Age-Related Eye Disease Study (AREDS) formulation of high-dose antioxidants and zinc supplement on progression of age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Design Multi-centered, randomized, controlled clinical trial; followed by epidemiologic follow-up study. Participants 4757 participants with varying severity of AMD were enrolled in the clinical trial. 3549 surviving participants consented to the follow-up study. Methods Participants were randomly assigned to antioxidants C, E, and beta-carotene and/or zinc vs. placebo during the clinical trial. In participants with intermediate AMD or advanced AMD in one eye, the AREDS formulation delayed the progression to advanced AMD. Participants were then enrolled in a follow-up study. Eye exams were conducted with annual fundus photographs and best-corrected visual acuity assessments. Medical histories and mortality were obtained for safety monitoring. Repeated measures logistic regression was used in the primary analyses. Main Outcome Measurement (1) Photographic assessment of progression to, or history of treatment for, advanced AMD [neovascular (NV) or central geographic atrophy (CGA)], and (2) moderate visual acuity loss from baseline (≥ 15 letters). Results Comparison of the participants originally assigned to placebo in AREDS categories 3 and 4 at baseline with those originally assigned to AREDS formulation at 10 years demonstrated a statistically significant (p<0.001) odds reduction in the risk of developing advanced AMD or the development of NV AMD (odds ratios and 99% confidence intervals: OR 0.66, CI: (0.53–0.83) and OR 0.60, CI: (0.47–0. 78), respectively). No statistically significant reduction (p=0.93) was seen for the CGA (OR 1.02, CI: 0.71–1.45). A statistically significant reduction (p=0.002) for the development of moderate vision loss was seen (OR 0.71, CI: 0.57–0.88). No adverse effects were associated with the AREDS formulation. Mortality was reduced in participants assigned to zinc, especially death from circulatory diseases. Conclusion Five years after the clinical trial ended, the beneficial effects of the AREDS formulation persisted for development of NV AMD but not for CGA. These results are consistent with the original recommendations that persons with intermediate AMD or advanced AMD in one eye should consider taking the AREDS formulation.

Objective To investigate potential risk factors associated with incident nuclear, cortical, and posterior subcapsular (PSC) cataracts and cataract surgery in participants in the Age-Related Eye Disease Study (AREDS). Design Clinic-based prospective cohort study. Participants Persons (N=4425), aged 60 to 80 years of age enrolled in a controlled clinical trial of antioxidant vitamins and minerals, AREDS, for age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and cataract. Methods Lens photographs were graded centrally for nuclear, cortical, and PSC opacities using the AREDS System for Classifying Cataracts. Type-specific incident cataracts were defined as an increase in cataract grade from none or mild at baseline to a grade of moderate at follow-up, with also a grade of at least moderate at the final visit, or cataract surgery. Cox regression analyses were used to assess baseline risk factors associated with type specific opacities and cataract surgery. Main Outcome Measures Moderate cataract was defined as a grade of ≥4.0 for nuclear opacity, ≥10% involvement within the full visible lens for cortical opacity, and ≥5% involvement of the central 5 mm circle of the lens for PSC opacity. These were graded on baseline and annual lens photographs. Results A clinic-based cohort of 4425 persons aged 55–80 years at baseline was followed for an average of 9.8 ± 2.4 years. The following associations were found: increasing age with increased risk of all types of cataract and cataract surgery; males with increased risk of PSC and decreased risk of cortical cataracts; non-whites with increased risk of cortical cataract; hyperopia with decreased risk of PSC, nuclear cataract, and cataract surgery; Centrum use with decreased risk of nuclear cataract; diabetes with increased risk of cortical, PSC cataract, and cataract surgery; higher educational level with decreased risk of cortical cataract; and smoking with increased risk of cortical cataract and cataract surgery. Estrogen replacement therapy in female participants increased the risk of cataract surgery. Conclusions Our findings are largely consistent with the results of previous studies, providing further evidence for possible modifiable risk factors for age-related cataract.

Purpose: In assessing the severity of age-related macular degeneration (AMD), the Age-Related Eye Disease Study (AREDS) Simplified Severity Scale predicts the risk of progression to late AMD. However, its manual use requires the time-consuming participation of expert practitioners. Although several automated deep learning systems have been developed for classifying color fundus photographs (CFP) of individual eyes by AREDS severity score, none to date has used a patient-based scoring system that uses images from both eyes to assign a severity score.Design: DeepSeeNet, a deep learning model, was developed to classify patients automatically by the AREDS Simplified Severity Scale (score 0-5) using bilateral CFP.Participants: DeepSeeNet was trained on 58,402 and tested on 900 images from the longitudinal follow-up of 4,549 participants from AREDS. Gold standard labels were obtained using reading center grades.Methods: DeepSeeNet simulates the human grading process by first detecting individual AMD risk factors (drusen size, pigmentary abnormalities) for each eye and then calculating a patient-based AMD severity score using the AREDS Simplified Severity Scale. Main Outcome Measures: Overall accuracy, specificity, sensitivity, Cohen's kappa, and area under the curve (AUC). The performance of DeepSeeNet was compared with that of retinal specialists. Results: DeepSeeNet performed better on patient-based classification (accuracy = 0.671; kappa = 0.558) than retinal specialists (accuracy = 0.599; kappa = 0.467) with high AUC in the detection of large drusen (0.94), pigmentary abnormalities (0.93), and late AMD (0.97). DeepSeeNet also outperformed retinal specialists in the detection of large drusen (accuracy 0.742 vs. 0.696; kappa 0.601 vs. 0.517) and pigmentary abnormalities (accuracy 0.890 vs. 0.813; kappa 0.723 vs. 0.535) but showed lower performance in the detection of late AMD (accuracy 0.967 vs. 0.973; kappa 0.663 vs. 0.754). Conclusions: By simulating the human grading process, DeepSeeNet demonstrated high accuracy with increased transparency in the automated assignment of individual patients to AMD risk categories based on the AREDS Simplified Severity Scale. These results highlight the potential of deep learning to assist and enhance clinical decision-making in patients with AMD, such as early AMD detection and risk prediction for developing late AMD. DeepSeeNet is publicly available on https://github.com/ncbi-nlp/ DeepSeeNet.