Comparison of patients with age-related maculopathy, their children and healthy controls by measurement of oxygen saturation, xantophyll, and naturalfluorescence in the fundus

Background: The aim of this study was to evaluate prospectively whether the re are differences in spectrometrically measurable parameters of the fundus between patients with early and late age-related maculopathy (ARM),the chi ldren of the ARM patients (F1 generation) and normals. Method: Using the "Jenaer Imaging Spectrometer", retinal oxygen saturation, xanthophyll, and intrinsic fluorescence were measured; the spatial distrib ution of xanthophyll was determined using the Rodenstock SLO 101 model. Results: Xanthophyll is reduced in late ARM as compared to the F1 generatio n and the control group (alpha<0.01). The different fluorescence spectra, m easured at shortwave and at longwave excitation, suggest the presence of mo re than one fluorophore. Furthermore, the components of the fluorophores se em to be different between patients with ARM and their F1 generation. The l ongwave autofluorescence is age-dependent only in late ARM (r(2)=0.81). For the first time, we found an alteration in oxygen saturation in retinal ves sels in patients with ARM. Conclusions: Xanthophyll is reduced only in late ARM. Autofluorescene and o xygen saturation are different between ARM patients, the F1 generation and normals, however, we were not able to identify a genetically based predispo sition concerning the parameters studied.