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Changes in visual function and retinal structure in the progression of Alzheimer's disease
Salobrar-García E, de Hoz R, Ramírez AI, López-Cuenca I, Rojas P, Vazirani R, Amarante C, Yubero R et al.. PloS one, 2019-08-15
Topic: Amyloid, tau and blood-test diagnosis
Background Alzheimer's Disease (AD) can cause degeneration in the retina and optic nerve either directly, as a result of amyloid beta deposits, or secondarily, as a result of the degradation of the visual cortex. These effects raise the possibility that tracking ophthalmologic changes in the retina can be used to assess neurodegeneration in AD. This study aimed to detect retinal changes and associated functional changes in three groups of patients consisting of AD patients with mild disease, AD patients with moderate disease and healthy controls by using non-invasive psychophysical ophthalmological tests and optical coherence tomography (OCT). Methods We included 39 patients with mild AD, 21 patients with moderate AD and 40 age-matched healthy controls. Both patients and controls were ophthalmologically healthy. Visual acuity, contrast sensitivity, colour perception, visual integration, and choroidal thicknesses were measured. In addition, OCT and OCT angiography (OCTA) were applied. Findings Visual acuity, contrast sensitivity, colour perception, and visual integration were significantly lower in AD patients than in healthy controls. Compared to healthy controls, macular thinning in the central region was significant in the mild AD patients, while macular thickening in the central region was found in the moderate AD group. The analysis of macular layers revealed significant thinning of the retinal nerve fibre layer, the ganglion cell layer and the outer plexiform layer in AD patients relative to controls. Conversely, significant thickening was observed in the outer nuclear layer of the patients. However, mild AD was associated with significant thinning of the subfovea and the nasal and inferior sectors of the choroid. Significant superonasal and inferotemporal peripapillary thinning was observed in patients with moderate disease. Conclusions The first changes in the mild AD patients appear in the psychophysical tests and in the central macula with a decrease in the central retinal thickness. When there was a disease progression to moderate AD, psychophysical tests remained stable with respect to the decrease in mild AD, but significant thinning in the peripapillary retina and thickening in the central retina appeared. The presence of AD is best indicated based on contrast sensitivity.
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APA 7th
Salobrar-García, E., de Hoz, R., Ramírez, A. I., López-Cuenca, I., Rojas, P., Vazirani, R., et al. (2019). Changes in visual function and retinal structure in the progression of Alzheimer's disease. PloS one. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0220535
Vancouver
Salobrar-García E, de Hoz R, Ramírez AI, López-Cuenca I, Rojas P, Vazirani R, et al. Changes in visual function and retinal structure in the progression of Alzheimer's disease. PloS one. 2019. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0220535. PMID: 31415594.
BibTeX
@article{salobrargarcia2019-31415594,
author = {Salobrar-García, E. and de Hoz, R. and Ramírez, A. I. and López-Cuenca, I. and Rojas, P. and Vazirani, R. and Amarante, C. and Yubero, R. and others},
title = {{Changes in visual function and retinal structure in the progression of Alzheimer's disease}},
journal = {PloS one},
year = {2019},
doi = {10.1371/journal.pone.0220535},
pmid = {31415594},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0220535}
}
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Key findings
- Background Alzheimer's Disease (AD) can cause degeneration in the retina and optic nerve either directly, as a result of amyloid beta deposits, or secondarily, as a result of the degradation of the visual cortex.
- Findings Visual acuity, contrast sensitivity, colour perception, and visual integration were significantly lower in AD patients than in healthy controls.
- Compared to healthy controls, macular thinning in the central region was significant in the mild AD patients, while macular thickening in the central region was found in the moderate AD group.
- The analysis of macular layers revealed significant thinning of the retinal nerve fibre layer, the ganglion cell layer and the outer plexiform layer in AD patients relative to controls.
- Conversely, significant thickening was observed in the outer nuclear layer of the patients.
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Study details
- Participants39
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 48/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, effect reported and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it. We have no data on journal's citation record, times cited, citations per year, impact for its field and year, cited by studies here, still being cited, senior author's track record, institution's track record and multi-centre collaboration, so those were left out: it earned 28 of the 58 points we could judge it on, which is 48 out of 100.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (PloS one) |
| Journal's citation record | — / 4 | No journal record from OpenAlex — left out of this score |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 2 / 5 | 2019 — within 10 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 1 / 4 | 39 participants |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 3 / 3 | Studied in people (participant count stated) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | — / 7 | No citation count (not found in OpenAlex) — left out of this score |
| Citations per year | — / 5 | No citation count or no year — left out of this score |
| Impact for its field and year | — / 6 | No field-weighted citation impact (OpenAlex has none yet) — left out of this score |
| Cited by studies here | — / 6 | Not yet checked against this library's citation graph — left out of this score |
| Still being cited | — / 4 | No yearly citation counts — left out of this score |
| Senior author's track record | — / 4 | Senior author's record not available — left out of this score |
| Institution's track record | — / 3 | No institution listed in OpenAlex — left out of this score |
| Multi-centre collaboration | — / 3 | Institutions not listed — left out of this score |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 31415594) |
| Free to read | 2 / 2 | Free to read |
| Points | 28 / 58 | Scored on 11 of 20 parts. We have no data for the rest, so they are left out: 28 of the 58 points we could judge it on is 48 out of 100. |
| Total | 48 / 100 | — |
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