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Updated: May 1, 2026
Author Spotlight: Ex Vivo OCT-Based Multimodal Imaging of Human Donor Eyes for Research into Age-Related Macular Degeneration
Published on: May 26, 2023
Twelve-month natural history of dark adaptation in patients with AMD
Gregory R Jackson1, Mark E Clark, Ingrid U Scott
1*PhD †BS ‡MD, MPH §COA ∥MD Penn State Hershey Eye Center, Penn State College of Medicine, Hershey, Pennsylvania (GRJ, IUS, LEW, DAQ); Department of Ophthalmology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama (MEC); and Translational Medicine, Novartis Institute for BioMedical Research, Cambridge, Massachusetts (MGB).
Purpose:
A sensitive endpoint is required for clinical trials evaluating preventative therapies for early age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Dark adaptation (DA) is a sensitive marker of AMD and has been proposed as a potential endpoint. This study evaluated whether significant changes in DA speed could be detected in participants with early to intermediate AMD at 12 months following baseline DA measurement.
Methods:
Dark adaptation, visual acuity (VA), and fundus photography were obtained at baseline and at 6 and 12 months in 26 subjects with AMD and in 6 subjects with normal retinal health. Disease severity was assessed by the Nine-Step Age-Related Eye Disease Study AMD severity scale.
Results:
At 12 months, significant progression of DA impairment occurred in 5 of 26 (19%) participants with AMD. None of the participants with AMD exhibited a significant worsening of fundus grade or decrease of acuity related to disease progression. The normal group exhibited stable DA and VA during the observation period.
Conclusions:
Significant worsening of DA was observed in 19% of subjects with AMD in 12 months of observation, despite stable VA and fundus appearance. This study suggests that DA may be a suitable functional endpoint for early clinical studies evaluating novel treatments for early to intermediate AMD.
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