Evaluation of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) level in the tears and serum of age-related macular degeneration patients

Mohamad Shahidatul-Adha,Embong Zunaina,Mazlan N Aini-Amalina

doi:10.1038/s41598-022-08492-7

Abstract

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is an important cause of irreversible central blindness worldwide. Clinical manifestations range from asymptomatic in early and intermediate AMD to significant vision loss in late AMD. Approximately 10% of cases of early AMD eventually progress to the late advanced stage, influenced by the upregulation of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). In this study, we evaluated VEGF concentration in the tears and serum of AMD patients. Our study revealed a significantly higher level of VEGF in the tears of patients with AMD compared with controls. The tear VEGF level has high sensitivity and specificity, and is significantly related to the severity of AMD, whilst serum VEGF level is non-specific and non-predictive of AMD severity. Thus, VEGF level in the tears may be used as a non-invasive biomarker for AMD progression. A large cohort study is needed for further verification.

Highlights

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a major cause of severe visual impairment in aging p opulations[1]
Among the patients with AMD, early AMD was more common in women (58.3%), while late AMD was more frequent in men (61.1%)
We evaluated vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) levels in the tears and serum of AMD patients

Summary

Introduction

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a major cause of severe visual impairment in aging p opulations[1]. The key mediator in its progression to late neovascular or wet AMD is vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)[10,11]. VEGF level in vitreous and aqueous humor are significantly higher in the AMD group than in the control group[16–18]. The quantification of VEGF level in the vitreous and aqueous humor is relatively invasive and inappropriate for a routine study due to potential surgical complication and contamination[19]. A higher mean serum VEGF levels in patients with exudative AMD was observed in previous s tudies[11,20]. Tear fluid analysis has gained interest in ophthalmology research in recent y ears[26,27]. 0.048c 0.126b 0.367b > 0.99c 0.848b 0.005c evaluating VEGF levels in the tear fluid of AMD patients.

Objectives

Methods

Results

Conclusion