ASSOCIATION BETWEEN ORAL IRON SUPPLEMENTATION AND RETINAL OR SUBRETINAL HEMORRHAGE IN THE COMPARISON OF AGE-RELATED...

Because patients often take iron supplements without medical indication, and iron can accumulate in vascular endothelial cells, the authors evaluated the association of oral iron supplementation with retinal/subretinal hemorrhage in patients with neovascular age-related macular degeneration.

A post hoc secondary data analysis of comparison of age-related macular degeneration treatments trials was performed. Participants were interviewed for use of oral iron supplements. Trained readers evaluated retinal/subretinal hemorrhage in baseline fundus photographs. Adjusted odds ratios from multivariate logistic regression models assessed the association between iron use and baseline hemorrhage adjusted by age, sex, smoking, hypertension, anemia, and use of antiplatelet/anticoagulant drugs.

Among 1,165 participants, baseline retinal/subretinal hemorrhage was present in the study eye in 71% of 181 iron users and in 61% of 984 participants without iron use (adjusted odds ratio = 1.47, P = 0.04), and the association was dose dependent (adjusted linear trend P = 0.048). Iron use was associated with hemorrhage in participants with hypertension (adjusted odds ratio = 1.87, P = 0.006) but not without hypertension. The association of iron use with hemorrhage remained significant among hypertensive participants without anemia (adjusted odds ratio = 1.85, P = 0.02).

Among participants of comparison of age-related macular degeneration treatments trials, the use of oral iron supplements was associated with retinal/subretinal hemorrhage in a dose-response manner. Unindicated iron supplementation may be detrimental in patients with wet age-related macular degeneration.