The association between Age-related Macular Degeneration and Meibomian Gland Dysfunction

Purpose: To determine the association between Age related macular degeneration and Meibomian gland dysfunction Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 470 patients over 55 years old who were referred to the eye clinic were enrolled. Demographic data including medical history and suggested risk factors of AMD was recorded. Biomicroscopic and Funduscopic examination were performed for AMD and MGD. Patients with AMD were grouped by their type of involvement as wet or dry. The severity of MGD was evaluated clinically by biomicroscopic examination. The subjects were tested for Lipid profile , including TG, LDL, HDL and serum cholesterol. Results: The study population included 470 adults (55.7% female) with an average age of 67.77 ± 9.7. AMD prevalence was 13%. 9.2% (43 cases) of patients had dry type and 3.8% (18 cases) of patients had wet type. Also, the prevalence of MGD was 41.9%, the severity of which, was mild in 23.2%, moderate in 16.4% and severe in 2.3% of patients . There was a significant association between MGD and AMD (P<0.001). Patients with MGD, were 8.1 times more likely to have AMD. In this study, there was no significant association between hyperlipidemia and AMD, but there was an association between hyperlipidemia and MGD. Conclusion: The results of this study showed that there is a significant association between MGD and AMD. We have no reasonable explanation for this association. Maybe the oxidative processes which contribute in the pathogenesis of these two entities play a role.