Comorbidity of age-related macular degeneration with Alzheimer’s disease: A histopathologic case-control study

INTRODUCTION: Previous studies evaluating the association between clinically diagnosed Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and age-related macular degeneration (AMD) have generated conflicting results. This study is the first to assess whether AMD prevalence is higher in AD patients than non-AD controls by using histopathology to definitively diagnose AD. METHODS: This was a retrospective case-control study utilizing diagnostic information extracted from autopsy reports of patients age 75 and above, including 115 with a neuropathological diagnosis of AD and 57 age-matched normal controls. RESULTS: The rate of AMD was not significantly higher in AD cases (53.0%) than in controls (59.6%) (z = 0.820, p = 0.794). AMD severity as determined by Sarks score was similar between AD patients and controls (χ(2) = 2.96, p = 0.706). There was also no significant association between Braak stage of AD severity and AMD (χ(2) = 4.55, p = 0.602). DISCUSSION: No significant effect of AD diagnosis or pathologic severity on AMD comorbidity was found, suggesting that any shared mechanisms between AMD and AD may be nondeterministic.