The relation of coffee and caffeine to the 5-year incidence of early age-related maculopathy: the Beaver Dam Eye Study.

PubMed ID: 11476699

Author(s): Tomany SC, Klein R, Klein BE. The relation of coffee and caffeine to the 5-year incidence of early age-related maculopathy: the Beaver Dam Eye Study. Am J Ophthalmol. 2001 Aug;132(2):271-3. PMID 11476699

Journal: American Journal Of Ophthalmology, Volume 132, Issue 2, Aug 2001

PURPOSE To examine the relationship between coffee and caffeine consumption and the 5-year incidence of early age-related maculopathy and its component lesions, soft indistinct drusen or pigmentary abnormalities.

DESIGN A prospective cohort study conducted from 1988 to 1995 with an average follow-up of 4.8 years.

METHODS Data from baseline and 5-year follow-up examinations were analyzed for Beaver Dam Eye Study participants (n = 3435). The Wisconsin Age-Related Maculopathy Grading System was used to assess the presence and severity of early age-related maculopathy.

RESULTS Men were more likely to be coffee and caffeine drinkers than were women. For both men and women, coffee and caffeine intake decreased with age. Coffee and caffeine consumption were not associated with the 5-year incidence of early age-related maculopathy, soft indistinct drusen, or pigmentary abnormalities.

CONCLUSION Neither a history of coffee nor caffeine consumption is associated with incident early age-related maculopathy.