AMD not linked to dementia or Alzheimer's

Results of a study conducted by British researchers were published in the JAMA Opthalmology journal reveal no connection between age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and Alzheimer's disease or dementia. Almost 66,000 AMD patients, 168,000 patients with Alzheimer's or other forms of dementia and more than 7.7 million people in a comparison group were involved in the study. While Alzheimer's disease, AMD, and dementia are all conditions associated with aging, and share many of the same risk factors, the genetic risk factors for each of the conditions are apparently different. Researchers determined that AMD patients did not have a higher risk of developing Alzheimer's or other dementia. Even though there is no connection between the conditions, patients with any form of dementia will be less inclined to seek treatment for their macular degeneration and this might possibly be because people with dementia may not get regular eye exams.*