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The association of retinal vessel calibre, white matter hyperintensities and cognitive decline in community-dwelling older adults
Catherine E. Robb, Amy G. Brodtmann, Robyn L. Woods, Ruth E. Trevaks, Stephanie Alison Ward, Meng Law, Suzanne Gaye Orchard, Anne M. Murray et al.. Age and Ageing, 2025-08-21
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
This study included 3540 participants with RVC data and 489 with WMH data (median [IQR] age: 73.2 [71.4-76.3] and 72.5 [71.2-75.4] years; female: 52.9% and 47.6%) over a median follow-up of 7.4 [IQR 5.5-8.5] and 3.8 [IQR 2.9-5.3] years, respectively. Baseline RVCs were not significantly associated with cognitive trajectories nor with baseline WMHs. Larger baseline WMH volumes were associated with greater global (Modified Mini-Mental State Examination) decline (mean 0.40 points/year; 95% CI 0.57, 0.22) and declines in delayed memory (HVLT-r) (-0.13 [-0.22, -0.04]), psychomotor function (Symbol Digit Modalities Test) (-0.29 [-0.52, -0.07]) and to a lesser extent, executive function (Controlled Oral Word Association Test) (-0.09 [95% CI -0.22, 0.03]). In contrast to WMH volumes, RVCs were not associated with cognitive decline. Exploring longitudinal changes in a broader range of retinal and brain biomarkers may provide deeper insights into the relationship between ocular and cerebral biomarkers in CSVD and clinical outcomes.
Key findings
- This study included 3540 participants with RVC data and 489 with WMH data (median [IQR] age: 73.2 [71.4-76.3] and 72.5 [71.2-75.4] years; female: 52.9% and 47.6%) over a median follow-up of 7.4 [IQR 5.5-8.5] and 3.8 [IQR 2.9-5.3] years, respectively.
- Baseline RVCs were not significantly associated with cognitive trajectories nor with baseline WMHs.
- Larger baseline WMH volumes were associated with greater global (Modified Mini-Mental State Examination) decline (mean 0.40 points/year; 95% CI 0.57, 0.22) and declines in delayed memory (HVLT-r) (-0.13 [-0.22, -0.04]), psychomotor function (Symbol Digit Modalities Test) (-0.29 [-0.52, -0.07]) and to a lesser extent, executive function (Controlled Oral Word Association Test) (-0.09 [95% CI -0.22, 0.03]).
- In contrast to WMH volumes, RVCs were not associated with cognitive decline.
- Exploring longitudinal changes in a broader range of retinal and brain biomarkers may provide deeper insights into the relationship between ocular and cerebral biomarkers in CSVD and clinical outcomes.
Why it matters
In community-dwelling older adults, baseline retinal vessel calibres were not significantly associated with cognitive trajectories or with white matter hyperintensities, while larger baseline WMH volumes were associated with greater global and domain-specific cognitive decline. The study found no significant link for retinal vessel calibre, so it does not support that measure as a useful marker here.
Study details
- Study designcross-sectional
- Participants3,540
- Effect size52.9%; 47.6%
- Evidence strengthModerate
How this study scored 52/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal, and it is a snapshot of people at one point in time. Scored zero for randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Age and Ageing) |
| Journal's citation record | 2 / 4 | Age and Ageing: journal h-index 231 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 4 / 12 | A snapshot of people at one point in time |
| Strength of evidence | 3 / 5 | Rated “moderate” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 4 / 5 | 2025 — within 3 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 3 / 4 | 3,540 participants |
| Effect reported | 2 / 3 | Effect reported as a number, without an interval or test |
| 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 | 1 / 7 | Cited 1 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 0 / 5 | 0.3 citations a year over 3 year(s) since 2025 |
| Impact for its field and year | 1 / 6 | Cited 0.6× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 0 / 6 | No other study in this library cites it |
| Still being cited | 0 / 4 | Cited 1 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 3 / 4 | Last-listed author John J. McNeil: h-index 91 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 2 / 3 | Inserm: institution h-index 1,988 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 3 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 17 institution(s) in 3 countries |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 40966613) |
| Free to read | 2 / 2 | Free to read |
| Total | 52 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
Full text: free to read — OpenAlex lists this copy as free to read: the link above (checked 6 Feb 1020).
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. The record's author list ends in “et al.”, so not every author is named. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Robb, C. E., Brodtmann, A. G., Woods, R. L., Trevaks, R. E., Ward, S. A., Law, M., et al. (2025). The association of retinal vessel calibre, white matter hyperintensities and cognitive decline in community-dwelling older adults. Age and Ageing. https://doi.org/10.1093/ageing/afaf243
Vancouver
Robb CE, Brodtmann AG, Woods RL, Trevaks RE, Ward SA, Law M, et al. The association of retinal vessel calibre, white matter hyperintensities and cognitive decline in community-dwelling older adults. Age and Ageing. 2025. doi:10.1093/ageing/afaf243. PMID: 40966613.
BibTeX
@article{robb2025-40966613,
author = {Robb, Catherine E. and Brodtmann, Amy G. and Woods, Robyn L. and Trevaks, Ruth E. and Ward, Stephanie Alison and Law, Meng and Orchard, Suzanne Gaye and Murray, Anne M. and others},
title = {{The association of retinal vessel calibre, white matter hyperintensities and cognitive decline in community-dwelling older adults}},
journal = {Age and Ageing},
year = {2025},
doi = {10.1093/ageing/afaf243},
pmid = {40966613},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1093/ageing/afaf243}
}
Studies this one cites
Referenced by this study and also in the alzhub library, so you can read them here.