Age-Related Macular Degeneration (AMD)
Conditions
Brief summary
AMD represents an important cause of irreversible visual impairment in the elderly. Despite its clinical importance, there is limited contemporary epidemiological information regarding AMD among elderly patients in Upper Egypt. The availability of slit-lamp biomicroscope, dilated fundus examination, fundus photography and optical coherence tomography at Assiut University Hospitals makes it possible to conduct systematic clinical assessment of elderly patients.
Detailed description
Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a chronic degenerative macular disorder and an important cause of irreversible visual impairment in older adults. It affects the retinal pigment epithelium, Bruch's membrane and photoreceptor complex, and its clinical spectrum ranges from drusen and pigmentary abnormalities to geographic atrophy and macular neovascularization. AMD is strongly age-related and is influenced by modifiable and non-modifiable factors, particularly smoking, cardiovascular risk factors and genetic susceptibility. The Beckman clinical classification provides a practical framework dividing disease into early, intermediate and late AMD, with late disease comprising geographic atrophy and neovascular AMD. Appropriate assessment of elderly patients includes history, best-corrected visual acuity, dilated fundus examination and retinal imaging when clinically indicated. Contemporary Egyptian epidemiological data remain limited, particularly in Upper Egypt. A 2025 cross-sectional study of 283 elderly residents of geriatric homes in East Cairo reported AMD in 12.7% of participants and described associations with increasing age and several systemic and behavioral factors. However, a geriatric-home population differs from patients attending ophthalmology services, and there are limited data describing AMD among elderly ophthalmic patients in Assiut and Upper Egypt. Assiut University Hospitals serve a large population from Assiut and surrounding governorates and have facilities for standardized ophthalmic examination and macular OCT when indicated. Estimating hospital-based prevalence and documenting the clinical phenotype may provide useful local data for clinical recognition, referral and future epidemiological research. Therefore, this study will assess the prevalence and clinical characteristics of AMD among elderly patients attending Assiut University Hospitals and explore demographic, systemic and ocular factors associated with its presence.
Interventions
DEVICEOCT - clear
Spectral-domain macular OCT for suspected/confirmed AMD, unexplained central visual loss, suspected geographic atrophy or suspected neovascular AMD
Sponsors
Assiut University
Study design
Observational model
OTHER
Time perspective
CROSS_SECTIONAL
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
60 Years to 100 Years
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
* • Age ≥60 years. * Attendance at the ophthalmology outpatient clinics during the recruitment period. * Willingness to participate and ability to provide written informed consent. * Ability to undergo the planned ophthalmic examination.
Exclusion criteria
* Macular diseases unrelated to AMD that substantially interfere with AMD assessment, such as diabetic macular edema, macular dystrophy or retinal vein occlusion involving the macula. * Pathologic myopia with macular complications that mimic or obscure AMD. * Major ocular trauma or previous vitreoretinal surgery preventing reliable macular assessment. * Media opacity preventing adequate fundus examination/imaging when retinal assessment cannot subsequently be achieved. * Active ocular infection preventing safe examination. * Other retinal disorders judged by the investigator to make AMD classification unreliable.
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Prevalence of AMD among eligible elderly participants. | 2 years. | elderly patients older than 60 years. |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame |
|---|---|
| • Distribution of early, intermediate, late non-neovascular and late neovascular AMD. • Frequency of unilateral and bilateral AMD. | 2 years |
Contacts
CONTACTOmar Almoutaz Eltayeb, reseacher
CONTACTAli Natag Ryad, professor
STUDY_DIRECTORAli Natag Ryad, professor
Assiut University
STUDY_DIRECTORMohamed Anwar Sayed, Associate professor
Assiut University
Outcome results
None listed