Can Heart Disease Meds Treat AMD?
Reported December 03, 2009
(Ivanhoe Newswire) — Low-dose aspirin may have positive impacts on age-related macular degeneration (AMD).
AMD is an eye disease that shares similar risk factors as cardiovascular disease (CVD). Recent studies have linked early-stage AMD to a more likely chance of developing CVD.
Researchers found that aspirin, used to avoid blood vessel blockages in CVD patients, reduces the risk of developing vision-impacting AMD by 18 percent. It also has greater benefits to women who do not take multivitamins.
If future studies confirm our findings, it could be important to make the public aware of this benefit,” William G. Christen, lead researcher, Sc.D., of Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, MA was quoted as saying.
In another study, researchers found that statins did not decrease the risk for advanced AMD in patients. In fact, the study concluded that statin users were at slightly higher risk than non-users for developing advanced AMD. Statins are primarily used to lower cholesterol in CVD patients.
SOURCE: American Academy of Ophthalmology December 2009