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Br J Ophthalmol 2003;87:1121-1125 doi:10.1136/bjo.87.9.1121
  • Clinical science
    • Extended reports

The association between statin use and age related maculopathy

  1. G McGwin, Jr1,2,
  2. C Owsley1,
  3. C A Curcio1,
  4. R J Crain1,3
  1. 1Department of Ophthalmology, School of Medicine, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA
  2. 2Department of Epidemiology and International Health, School of Public Health, and Section of Trauma, Burns, and Surgical Critical Care, Division of General Surgery, Department of Surgery, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA
  3. 3Birmingham Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Birmingham, AL, USA
  1. Correspondence to: Gerald McGwin Jr, MS, PhD, Department of Ophthalmology, School of Medicine, University of Alabama at Birmingham, 700 S, 18th Street, Suite 609, Birmingham, AL, USA; mcgwin{at}eyes.uab.edu
  • Accepted 26 December 2006

Abstract

Aims: To evaluate the association between age related maculopathy (ARM) and statin use.

Methods: A nested case-control study among patients at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Birmingham, Alabama, with newly diagnosed ARM (cases) between 1997 to 2001 were selected and age matched to non-ARM controls.

Results: 550 incident cases of ARM were identified and matched to 5500 controls. Overall, cases were 70% (OR 0.30, 95% CI 0.21 to 0.45) less likely to have received and filled a statin prescription relative to the controls. This association was present among both current and past (OR 0.34, 95% CI 0.21 to 0.53 and OR 0.26, 95% CI 0.14 to 0.47, respectively) statin users. When considering use of statin and/or non-statin lipid lowering medications, a significant risk reduction was observed for statin only users (OR 0.30, 95% CI 0.20 to 0.45) and combined statin and non-statin users (OR 0.20, 95% CI 0.06 to 0.64); there was no significant association for non-statin only users (OR 0.47, 95% CI 0.20 to 1.13).

Conclusions: The results of this study suggest that subjects with ARM were significantly less likely to have filled a statin prescription. Future clinical research initiatives should include a clinical trial to provide direct evidence of the effectiveness of statins in lowering the incidence and progression of ARM.

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