Prevalence and incidence of age-related macular degeneration in Europe: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract

Background/AimsAge-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the main cause of visual impairment and blindness in Europe. A further increase in the number of affected persons is expected and current European data are needed for healthcare resource planning.MethodsWe performed a systematic review on the prevalence and incidence of AMD based on the meta-analysis of observational studies in epidemiology guideline. Meta-analysis and meta-regression on time-trends, age, countries, regions, sex and classification systems for AMD were performed. Based on Eurostat population projections, the pooled prevalence estimates were extrapolated to the year 2050.ResultsTwenty-two prevalence and four incidence studies published since 1996 were included. Our pooled prevalence estimate of early or intermediate AMD and any late AMD in those 60 years and older was 25.3% (95% CI 18.0% to 34.4%) and 2.4% (95% CI 1.8% to 3.3%), respectively. A significant increase in prevalence was seen in older populations. In the meta-analysis of incidence, the pooled annual incidence of any late AMD was 1.4 per 1 000 individuals (95% CI 0.8 to 2.6). Overall, the number of EU inhabitants with any AMD is expected to increase from 67 to 77 million until 2050. Incident late AMD is estimated to increase from 400 000 per year today to 700 000 per year in 2050.ConclusionsApproximately 67 million people in the EU are currently affected by any AMD and, due to population ageing, this number is expected to increase by 15% until 2050. Monitoring and treatment of people with advanced disease stages will require additional healthcare resources and thorough healthcare planning in the years and decades to come.

Seven days in medicine: 6-12 Nov 2019

“…Age related macular degeneration (AMD), the leading cause of irreversible blindness and severely impaired eyesight, is expected to affect 77 million Europeans by 2050, showed calculations published in the British Journal of Ophthalmology 3. This increase will require considerable extra healthcare resources and careful planning for decades to come, particularly as most cases will be in people aged over 70, the researchers warned.…”

Gene therapy for neovascular age-related macular degeneration: rationale, clinical trials and future directions

“…4 In Europe alone, late AMD is expected to affect 77 million people by 2050. 5 AMD can be categorised into two main groups: dry or non-neovascular AMD, and wet or neovascular AMD. Neovascular AMD (nAMD) presents with the growth of abnormal vessels, most often emanating from the choroidal circulation, but can originate from the retinal vasculature, causing acute vision loss through leakage, and if chronic through fibrosis and atrophy.…”

Clinical study protocol for a low-interventional study in intermediate age-related macular degeneration developing novel clinical endpoints for interventional clinical trials with a regulatory and patient access intention—MACUSTAR

“…After the introduction of vascular endothelial growth factor inhibitors, the outcome has significantly improved for these patients [5]. AMD currently affects more than 15 million individuals in the European Union (EU) alone and more than 190 million globally [2,[6][7][8][9]. With population aging, AMD prevalence is expected to increase considerably over the next decades [2,6].…”

“…Plasma, serum, and DNA are biobanked for future analyses 6. Blood collection for Genetics should occur at baseline visit, but it can occur at any time during the subject follow-up 7.…”