Dr. Leslie Doctor, a Fairfield
County, Connecticut eye specialist shared that
recent reports suggest that there is an increased risk of stroke in patients
with late stage age
related macular degeneration (AMD). What does
your risk of having a stroke have to do with age related macular degeneration?
Possibly quite a bit as it turns out. “Researchers presenting data from the Rotterdam
Study at the International Stroke Conference reported that older adults with
late stage, age related macular degeneration (AMD) may have a significantly higher risk for hemorrhagic
stroke than do individuals without the eye disease,” said Dr. Doctor. “There
may be a common underlying process contributing to both age related macular degeneration
(AMD) and bleeding strokes, but more research will be needed to determine if
that’s the case,’ she further explained.
Researchers
found that the risk for any stroke was 56% higher in participants with
late-stage AMD than in individuals without AMD after they controlled for the
effects of age, sex, diabetes, blood pressure, use of antihypertensive
medication, smoking, cholesterol levels, carotid artery plaques, body mass
index, alcohol intake, and C-reactive protein levels.
“The single
most significant finding in the study was that participants with late-stage AMD-either
the wet or dry forms-had six fold higher risk for intracerebral hemorrhage or
stroke than did participants without AMD,” noted Dr. Doctor. ”This is a critical piece of information and
one we need to be responsive to and keep patients and their physicians abreast
of.”
If
you or someone you know suffers from or is concerned about age related macular
degeneration (AMD), especially if they are concerned about their risk of stroke
or have a family history of stroke please feel
free to schedule an eye exam by calling
Doctor & Associates-203-227-4113, visit Doctor &
Associates in Fairfield County or facebook.com/doctorandassociates to
schedule an appointment.
Doctor & Associates is a
leading Fairfield County Connecticut eye care practice with offices at
129 Kings Highway North,
Westport, Connecticut 06880, 195 Danbury Road, Wilton, Connecticut 06897 and 148
East Avenue, Norwalk, Connecticut 06851.
