Among older adults, age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a prevalent disabling condition that begins as subtle visual disturbances and can progress to permanent loss of central vision. In its late neovascular form, AMD is treatable with inhibitors of vascular endothelial growth factor, the key driver of exudative disease. In the atrophic form, treatment remains elusive. This review addresses the natural history of AMD – through early, intermediate, and advanced disease stages – and concentrates on diagnosis and risk stratification, deficiencies of current treatments, and the promising findings of emerging therapies.

Aim: An inverse relationship between coffee consumption and mortality has been reported in the general population. However, the effect of coffee consumption in diabetes remains unclear. We aimed to evaluate the association of caffeine consumption and caffeine source with mortality among patients with diabetes.Methods: We examined the association of caffeine consumption with mortality among 1974 women and 1974 men with diabetes, using the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 1999–2010. Caffeine consumption was assessed at baseline using 24 h dietary recalls. Cox proportional hazard models were fitted to estimate hazard ratios (HR) for all-cause, cardiovascular, and cancer-related mortality according to caffeine consumption and its source, adjusting for potential confounders.Results: A dose-dependent inverse association between caffeine and all-cause mortality was observed in women with diabetes. Adjusted HR for death among women who consumed caffeine, as compared with non-consumers, were: 0.57 (95% CI, 0.40–0.82) for <100 mg of caffeine/day, 0.50 (95% CI, 0.32–0.78) for 100 to <200 mg of caffeine/day, and 0.39 (95% CI, 0.23–0.64) for ≥200 mg of caffeine/day (p = 0.005 for trend). This association was not observed in men. There was a significant interaction between sex and caffeine consumption (p = 0.015). No significant association between total caffeine consumption and cardiovascular or cancer mortality was observed. Women who consumed more caffeine from coffee had reduced risk of all-cause mortality (p = 0.004 for trend).Conclusion: Our study showed a dose-dependent protective effect of caffeine consumption on mortality among women with diabetes.

Purpose Despite our understanding of diabetes as an established risk factor for progressive kidney disease and cardiac complications, the prognostic significance of prediabetes in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) remains largely unknown. Methods Participants of the Chronic Renal Insufficiency Cohort (CRIC) were categorized as having normoglycemia, prediabetes, or diabetes according to fasting plasma glucose, glycated hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), and treatment with antidiabetic drugs at baseline. Unadjusted and adjusted proportional hazards models were fit to estimate the association of prediabetes and diabetes (versus normoglycemia) with: (1) composite renal outcome (end-stage renal disease, 50% decline in estimated glomerular filtration rate to ≤ 15 mL/min/1.73 m2, or doubling of urine protein-to-creatinine ratio to ≥ 0.22 g/g creatinine); (2) composite cardiovascular (CV) outcome (congestive heart failure, myocardial infarction or stroke); and (3) all-cause mortality. Results Of the 3701 individuals analyzed, 945 were normoglycemic, 847 had prediabetes and 1909 had diabetes. The median follow-up was 7.5 years. Prediabetes was not associated with the composite renal outcome (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR] 1.13; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.96–1.32; P = 0.14), but was associated with proteinuria progression (aHR 1.23; 95% CI, 1.03–1.47; P = 0.02). Prediabetes was associated with a higher risk of the composite CV outcome (aHR 1.38; 95% CI, 1.05–1.82; P = 0.02) and a trend towards all-cause mortality (aHR 1.28; 95% CI, 0.99–1.66; P = 0.07). Participants with diabetes had an increased risk of the composite renal outcome, the composite CV outcome, and all-cause mortality. Conclusions In individuals with CKD, prediabetes was not associated with composite renal outcome, but was associated with an increased risk of proteinuria progression and adverse CV outcomes.

Purpose Diabetes mellitus is a risk factor for the development and progression of chronic kidney disease (CKD). However, the association of prediabetes with adverse kidney outcomes is uncertain. Methods We performed a secondary analysis of the Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial (SPRINT), including 9361 participants without diabetes at baseline. We categorized participants according to fasting glucose level as having impaired fasting glucose [≥100 mg/dL (≥5.6 mmol/L)] or normoglycemia [&lt;100 mg/dL (&lt;5.6 mmol/L)]. Unadjusted and adjusted proportional hazards models were fitted to estimate the association of impaired fasting glucose (vs normoglycemia) with a composite outcome of worsening kidney function [≥30% decrease in estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) to &lt;60 mL/min/1.73 m2 in participants without baseline CKD; ≥50% decrease in eGFR or need for long-term dialysis/kidney transplantation in participants with CKD] or incident albuminuria (doubling of urinary albumin/creatinine ratio from &lt;10 mg/g to &gt;10 mg/g). These outcomes were also evaluated separately and according to CKD status at baseline. Results Participants’ mean age was 67.9 ± 9.4 years, 35.5% were female, and 31.4% were black. The median follow-up was 3.3 years, and 41.8% had impaired fasting glucose. Impaired fasting glucose was not associated with higher rates of the composite outcome [hazard ratio (HR): 0.97; 95% CI: 0.8 to 1.16], worsening kidney function (HR: 1.02; 95% CI: 0.75 to 1.37), or albuminuria (HR: 0.98; 95% CI: 0.78 to 1.23). Similarly, there was no association of impaired fasting glucose with outcomes according to baseline CKD status. Conclusions Impaired fasting glucose at baseline was not associated with the development of worsening kidney function or albuminuria in participants of SPRINT.

The concept of Less is More medicine emerged in North America in 2010. It aims to serve as an invitation to recognize the potential risks of overuse of medical care that may result in harm rather than in better health, tackling the erroneous assumption that more care is always better. In response, several medical societies across the world launched quality-driven campaigns ("Choosing Wisely") and published "top-five lists" of low-value medical interventions that should be used to help make wise decisions in each clinical domain, by engaging patients in conversations about unnecessary tests, treatments and procedures.However, barriers and challenges for the implementation of Less is More medicine have been identified in several European countries, where overuse is rooted in the culture and demanded by a society that requests certainty at almost any cost. Patients' high expectations, physician's behavior, lack of monitoring and pernicious financial incentives have all indirect negative consequences for medical overuse. Multiple interventions and quality-measurement efforts are necessary to widely implement Less is More recommendations. These also consist of a top-five list of actions: (1) a novel cultural approach starting from medical graduation courses, up to (2) patient and society education, (3) physician behavior change with data feedback, (4) communication training

Background and Purpose— Albuminuria is associated with stroke risk among individuals with diabetes. However, the association of albuminuria with incident stroke among nondiabetic patients is less clear. Methods— We performed a post hoc analysis of the SPRINT (Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial), which examined the effect of higher versus lower intensity blood pressure management on mortality in 8913 participants without diabetes. We fit unadjusted and adjusted Cox proportional hazards models to estimate the association of baseline albuminuria (urinary albumin-to-creatinine ratio ≥30 mg/g versus<30 mg/g) with stroke risk. We also assessed effect modification according to treatment arms. Results— Mean age was 68±9 years, 35% were female, and 30% were black. Median follow-up was 3.2 years, and 19% patients had baseline albuminuria. Incident stroke occurred in 129 individuals during follow-up. Albuminuria was associated with increased stroke risk (unadjusted hazard ratio, 2.24; 95% CI, 1.55–3.23; adjusted hazard ratio 1.73; 95% CI, 1.17–2.56). The association of albuminuria with incident stroke differed according to the randomized treatment arm ( P interaction=0.03). In the intensive treatment arm, the association of albuminuria and stroke was nonsignificant (unadjusted hazard ratio, 1.25; 95% CI, 0.69–2.28), whereas, in the standard treatment arm, it was significant (unadjusted hazard ratio, 3.44; 95% CI, 2.11–5.61). Conclusions— In a post hoc analysis of SPRINT, baseline albuminuria (versus not) was associated with a higher risk of incident stroke, but this relationship appeared to be restricted to those in the standard treatment arm. Further studies are required to conclusively determine if reduction of albuminuria in itself is beneficial in reducing stroke risk. Clinical Trial Registration— URL: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov . Unique identifier: NCT01206062.

Abstract Background An inverse relationship between coffee consumption and mortality has been reported in the general population. However, the association between caffeine consumption and mortality in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) remains uncertain. Methods We analysed 4863 non-institutionalized USA adults with CKD [defined by an estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) of 15–60 mL/min/1.73 m2 and/or a urinary albumin:creatinine ratio &gt;30 mg/g] in a nationwide study using the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 1999–2010. Caffeine consumption was evaluated by 24-h dietary recalls at baseline and all-cause, cardiovascular and cancer mortality were evaluated until 31 December 2011. We also performed an analysis of caffeine consumption according to its source (coffee, tea and soft drinks). Quartiles of caffeine consumption were &lt;28.2 mg/day (Q1), 28.2–103.0 (Q2), 103.01–213.5 (Q3) and &gt;213.5 (Q4). Results During a median follow-up of 60 months, 1283 participants died. Comparing with Q1 of caffeine consumption, the adjusted hazard ratio for all-cause mortality was 0.74 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.60–0.91] for Q2, 0.74 (95% CI 0.62–0.89) for Q3 and 0.78 (95% CI 0.62–0.98) for Q4 (P = 0.02 for trend across quartiles). There were no significant interactions between caffeine consumption quartiles and CKD stages or urinary albumin:creatinine ratio categories regarding all-cause mortality. Conclusions We detected an inverse association between caffeine consumption and all-cause mortality among participants with CKD.

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