Macular pigment optical density in a Brazilian sample

BACKGROUND: To evaluate macular pigment optical density (MPOD) and to identify its determinants in a sample of Brazilian individuals. METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study. One hundred three healthy individuals had both eyes photographed using a Visucam 500 digital fundus camera (Carl Zeiss Meditec, Jena, Germany) in combination with the MPOD module. Four variables were obtained: maximum MPOD, mean MPOD, MPOD volume, and MPOD area. Demographic data and information on lifestyle habits were also collected. RESULTS: Mean MPOD was 0.14 density unit ± 0.05. MPOD was not influenced by gender, smoking history, or refractive error. MPOD was significantly higher among black individuals than among white and biracial individuals. There was a positive but low correlation between MPOD and age. CONCLUSION: This study found MPOD values to be similar to those found in European samples but lower than other studies performed on Asian and Australian samples. This is the first data regarding MPOD in a South American Population.