100% of Centenarians Develop AMD

100% of Centenarians Develop AMD

A new study in Uruguay says that if you live long enough, you'll definitely get macular degeneration:

100% of centenarians develop AMD, study says

PUNTA DEL ESTE, Uruguay — A recent study confirmed that patients older than 100 years develop age-related macular degeneration 100% of the time, a presenter said here.

At Subspecialty Day of the Curso Regional Panamericano, Marcela Cypel, MD, presented data on patients more than 80 years old, showing the increasing occurrence of AMD in patients as they reach 80, 90 and 100 years of age.

"I think it's obvious to say that age-related macular degeneration is the most important retinal disease of the old people," Dr. Cypel said. "I think I can say that if we live enough, we're going to have AMD. For the older people we know and for ourselves, that's why it's so important to keep on researching all of this."

The study of 150 patients ranging in age from 80 years to 108 years showed 31% of the 70 patients aged 80 to 89 had AMD; 66% of the 50 patients aged 90 to 99 had AMD; and 100% of the 30 patients older than 100 had AMD. Most of these patients were diagnosed with dry AMD, Dr. Cypel said.

She suggested that physicians should continue to educate their patients on dietary supplements, regular ophthalmic visits and the benefits of the Amsler grid for early detection of AMD, especially in light of the prediction that more than 18% of Brazil's population will be older than 80 years by 2050.

"You can find the early AMD. You can find disease in the beginning," she said.