Investigation of factors that may affect the foveal avascular zone: An optical coherence tomography angiography study.

Significance: An understanding of factors that affect the foveal avascular zone (FAZ) in healthy eyes may aid in the early identification of patients at risk of retinal pathology, thereby allowing better management and preventive measures to be implemented.

Purpose: The size and shape of the FAZ can change due to retinal diseases associated with oxidative stress, including diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma, and macular degeneration. This study aimed to assess the relationship, if any, between factors that may affect the superficial FAZ (i.

Normative data on the foveal avascular zone in a young healthy Irish population using optical coherence tomography angiography.

Purpose: To establish normative data on the size, shape and vascular profile of the foveal avascular zone (FAZ) in a young, healthy, Irish population, using the Cirrus 5000 HD-OCT. Certain diseases may alter FAZ appearance. Normative databases provide normal baseline values for comparison, thus improving diagnostic ability.

Can Protanopia Be Correctly Diagnosed in Clinical Practice? An Evaluation of Diagnosis by Four Screening Tests.

Significance: Protanopia is a color vision deficiency (CVD) that is unacceptable for certain occupations. This study compares simultaneously for the first time the ability of three recently revised or developed clinical tests of color vision with the Ishihara test to diagnose protanopia from other color vision deficiencies.

Purpose: The objectives were to examine the ability of four clinical tests to differentiate (1) between protan and deutan CVDs in patients with protanopia and deuteranopia, and (2) protanopes and deuteranopes as "strong" deficiencies.

Investigation of Surrogate Biomarkers Associated with Macular Pigment Status in a Group of Older Irish Adults.

Significance: Macular pigment (MP) confers potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects at the macula; however, its optical density in the eye is not routinely measured in clinical practice.

Purpose: This study explored a range of surrogate biomarkers including anthropometric, clinical, and plasma measures that may be associated with lower MP optical density (MPOD).

Methods: Two thousand five hundred ninety-four subjects completed a full MP assessment as part of wave 1 of The Irish Longitudinal Study of Aging.

A review of the putative causal mechanisms associated with lower macular pigment in diabetes mellitus.

Macular pigment (MP) confers potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects at the macula, and may therefore protect retinal tissue from the oxidative stress and inflammation associated with ocular disease and ageing. There is a body of evidence implicating oxidative damage and inflammation as underlying pathological processes in diabetic retinopathy. MP has therefore become a focus of research in diabetes, with recent evidence suggesting that individuals with diabetes, particularly type 2 diabetes, have lower MP relative to healthy controls.

Identification of Surrogate Biomarkers for the Prediction of Patients at Risk of Low Macular Pigment in Type 2 Diabetes.

: This cross-sectional study compared macular pigment (MP) levels among persons with Type 2 diabetes relative to healthy controls. Additionally, a range of behavioral, anthropometric, clinical and serum measures were explored as possible predictors of low MP optical density (MPOD) in diabetes.: Two health status groups; Group 1: Type 2 diabetes (n = 188), and Group 2: Healthy controls (n = 2,594) completed a full MP assessment using customized heterochromatic flicker photometry, as part of The Irish Longitudinal Study on Aging (TILDA).

MACULAR PIGMENT OPTICAL DENSITY IS LOWER IN TYPE 2 DIABETES, COMPARED WITH TYPE 1 DIABETES AND NORMAL CONTROLS.

Purpose: This study was designed to investigate the optical density of macular pigment in Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes subjects relative to normal controls.

Methods: One hundred and fifty subjects were recruited to the study and divided into one of the three study groups on the basis of their health status, as follows: Group 1: Healthy controls; Group 2: Type 1 diabetes; Group 3: Type 2 diabetes. Macular Pigment Optical Density, at 0.

An evaluation of a novel instrument for measuring macular pigment optical density: the MPS 9000.

Purpose: Of the antioxidants found in the human retina, only the macular carotenoid quantities can be estimated noninvasively (albeit in a collective fashion), thus facilitating study of their role in that tissue. The aim of this study was to evaluate concordance between macular pigment optical density (MPOD) values recorded on a commercially available instrument, the MPS 9000, with those of an already validated heterochromatic flicker photometry instrument. Also, we assessed and compared test-retest variability for each instrument.

Macular pigment: its associations with color discrimination and matching.

Purpose: Macular pigment (MP) acts as a prereceptoral filter which selectively absorbs short wavelengths. It has the potential to alter color vision but the literature is conflicting on whether it does and, if so, to what extent, possibly reflecting differences between color mechanisms and color tests. This study was designed to identify and investigate relationships, if any, between MP optical density (MPOD) and color sensitivity using a battery of techniques to quantify the color vision of color-normal observers.

The impact of macular pigment augmentation on visual performance in normal subjects: COMPASS.

This study was conducted to investigate whether augmentation of macular pigment (MP) enhances visual performance (VP). 121 normal subjects were recruited. The active (A) group consumed 12 mg of lutein (L) and 1mg of zeaxanthin (Z) daily.

The relationship between macular pigment and visual performance.

This study was designed to assess whether macular pigment optical density (MPOD) is associated with visual performance. One hundred and forty-two young healthy subjects were recruited. Macular pigment optical density and visual performance were assessed by psychophysical tests including best corrected visual acuity (BCVA), mesopic and photopic contrast sensitivity, glare sensitivity, photostress recovery time (PRT).