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Small Drusen And Age-Related Macular Degeneration: The Beaver Dam Eye Study, Ronald Klein, Chelsea E. Myers, Kristine E. Lee, Ronald E. Gangnon, Theru A. Sivakumaran, Sudha K Iyengar, Barbara E. K. Klein

Pathology and Laboratory Medicine Faculty Publications

We tested the hypothesis that large areas of small hard drusen (diameter <63 μm) and intermediate drusen (diameter 63-124 μm) are associated with the incidence of age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Eyes of 3344 older adults with at least 2 consecutive visits spaced 5 years apart over a 20-year period were included. A 6-level severity scale including no drusen, 4 levels of increasing area (from minimal (<2596 μm²) to large (>9086 μm²)) of only small hard drusen, and intermediate drusen was used. The 5-year incidence of AMD was 3% in eyes at the start of the interval with no, minimal, small, and moderate areas of only small drusen and 5% and 25% for eyes with large area of only small drusen and intermediate drusen, respectively. Compared to eyes with a moderate area of small drusen, the odds ratio (OR) of developing AMD in eyes with a large area of only small …