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Updated: Nov 10, 2025

Using Retinal Imaging to Study Dementia
Published on: November 6, 2017
Ophthalmic conditions associated with dementia risk: The Cardiovascular Health Study
Phillip H Hwang1, Will T Longstreth1,2, Stephen M Thielke3,4
1Department of Epidemiology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA.
Introduction:
Ophthalmic conditions and dementia appear to overlap and may share common pathways, but research has not differentiated dementia subtypes.
Methods:
Diagnoses of cataracts, age-related macular degeneration (AMD), diabetic retinopathy (DR), and glaucoma were based on medical histories and International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision (ICD-9) codes for 3375 participants from the Cardiovascular Health Study. Dementia, including Alzheimer's disease (AD) and vascular dementia (VaD), was classified using standardized research criteria.
Results:
Cataracts were associated with AD (hazard ratio [HR] = 1.34; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.01-1.80) and VaD/mixed dementia (HR = 1.41; 95% CI = 1.02-1.95). AMD was associated with AD only (HR = 1.87; 95% CI = 1.13-3.09), whereas DR was associated with VaD/mixed dementia only (HR = 2.63; 95% CI = 1.10-6.27).
Discussion:
Differential associations between specific ophthalmic conditions and dementia subtypes may elucidate pathophysiologic pathways. Lack of association between glaucoma and dementia was most surprising from these analyses.
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