Pulsatile ocular blood flow in asymmetric age-related macular degeneration.
OBJECTIVE
Ocular perfusion abnormalities have been proposed in the pathogenesis of age-related macular degeneration (AMD) with differences in pulsatile ocular blood flow (POBF) in eyes with asymmetric AMD in Japanese and Taiwanese patients. The purpose of our study was to observe POBF difference in the fellow eyes of Caucasians with asymmetric AMD.


METHODS
This was a cross-sectional study comparing POBF in three groups of patients with asymmetric AMD in the fellow eyes: Group 1 (n=21) with drusen and active choroidal neovascularisation (CNV); Group 2 (n=18) with drusen and disciform scar; Group 3 (n=8) with CNV and disciform scar. The POBF was adjusted for intraocular pressure (IOP), pulse rate (PR), and axial length using multiple regression analysis. Generalised estimation equation model was used to include both eyes in each group.


RESULTS
The geometric mean (95% confidence interval) POBF values were as follows: Group 1 with drusen 1097.9 microl/min (957.0, 1259.7) in one eye and the fellow eye with CNV 1090.1 microl/min (932.3, 1274.7); Group 2 with drusen 946.0 microl/min (794.2, 1126.7) and disciform scar 966.2 microll/min (780.3, 1196.4); Group 3 with CNV 877.1 microl/min (628.3, 1224.6) and disciform scar 767.2 microl/min (530.5, 1109.7). Adjusting for differences in axial length, pulse rate and intraocular pressure, no statistically significant difference in POBF was found between fellow eyes in the same subject.


CONCLUSIONS
POBF is not different between fellow eyes of Caucasian patients with asymmetric AMD.
Sandhu
R
R
Retinal Research Unit, Department of Ophthalmology, King's College Hospital, Denmark Hill, London, UK.
Sivaprasad
S
S
Shah
S P
SP
Adewoyin
T
T
Chong
N V
NV
D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D020256:Choroidal Neovascularization / Q000503:physiopathology; D002921:Cicatrix / Q000503:physiopathology; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005123:Eye / Q000098:blood supply*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007429:Intraocular Pressure / Q000502:physiology; D008268:Macular Degeneration / Q000503:physiopathology*; D008297:Male; D011673:Pulsatile Flow / Q000502:physiology*; D012039:Regional Blood Flow; D015593:Retinal Drusen / Q000503:physiopathology