title: The relationship between foveal short-wavelength-sensitive visual function and macular pigment optical density in the ageing age.
abstract: To investigate the role of macular pigment in preserving foveal short-wavelength-sensitive (SWS) visual function in the ageing eye orientation identification acuity was measured in the fovea and at 12° eccentricity (nasal visual field) under SWS-cone isolating conditions in 73 participants (aged 20-71). Macular pigment optical density (MPOD) was measured at 0.5° eccentricity from the foveal centre using a heterochromatic flicker photometry (HFP) based instrument. MPOD was not significantly related to age but reduced SWS orientation identification acuity was associated with increasing age in the fovea and at 12° eccentricity. The rate at which foveal acuity changed in relation to acuity at 12° with increasing age was not significantly related to macular pigment levels. These findings do not support the hypothesis that higher macular pigment levels protect S-cone mediated foveal visual function in the ageing eye.
authors.affiliation: Vision Science Research Group, School of Biomedical Sciences, University of Ulster, Coleraine BT52 1SA, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom. r.beirne@ulster.ac.uk
authors.forename: Raymond O
authors.initials: RO
authors.lastname: Beirne
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology*; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D005260:Female; D005584:Fovea Centralis / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008266:Macula Lutea / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012044:Regression Analysis; D017949:Retinal Cone Photoreceptor Cells / Q000502:physiology*; D012168:Retinal Pigments / Q000502:physiology*; D014792:Visual Acuity / Q000502:physiology*; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D012168:Retinal Pigments