Local researchers concluded in a recent report that non-Hispanic white people are far more likely to develop macular degeneration than Black and Hispanic populations.
The report by Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland Clinic and Veterans Affairs Northeast Ohio Healthcare System found that Black patients are 74% less likely and Hispanic individuals are 44% less likely to develop macular degeneration than non-Hispanic whites. Macular degeneration causes a gradual loss of vision, particularly in older people, and can eventually lead to blindness.
The report, which studied 287,000 veterans, also confirmed that individuals who smoke or drink alcohol are more likely to develop macular degeneration, and that women are more likely than men to develop the disease. This is the largest such study and the first to focus on particular minority populations, said CWRU's Sudha Iyengar.
The lower risk among minorities is due to non-Hispanic whites being more susceptible to a protein, called complement factor H or CFH, associated with the disease, Iyengar said.
“There are differences in the genetic makeup of CFH between individuals who are of African descent and those who are of white or Caucasian descent," she said. "And those differences are significant enough to reduce risk for disease."
Meanwhile, the study strengthens the case for protein inhibitors being used to prevent the onset of the disease, Iyengar said.
“If you block CFH, then you would be able to block disease, and the reduction in risk if you block CFH is significant," she said.
Researchers will next assess study participants over time to determine what point in the disease’s progression is best to begin treatment, she said.
