Poor Kidney Health Advances AMD Risk

Cardiovascular-kidney-metabolic syndrome (CKM) is a complex condition with many catalysts and consequences. At higher levels of severity and inattention to care, it may be associated with an increased risk of AMD later on. CKM, a recently identified health disorder, comes with a range of symptoms that cause “a damaging cycle of organ injury and disease progression,” according to a paper by a team of Chinese researchers writing in American Journal of Ophthalmology, and previous research has pinpointed positive associations between other kidney-affecting conditions and AMD. Systemic conditions affecting cardiovascular, kidney and metabolic health may play a role in long-term AMD risk. Photo: American Heart Association. Click image to enlarge.  Using information from patients between the ages of 37 and 73, the study’s authors evaluated data from the UK Biobank, a virtual database of patient health records and biological samples. They studied a 319,638-person cohort and noted patient demographics and health factors that may have been connected to CKM onset. Patients were grouped into five stages based on BMI, waist circumference and other health conditions, with an average age of 56.3; just over half (51.7%) of subjects were female.While in the study the authors attributed “several mechanisms” to the “positive relationships between CKM syndrome and incident AMD,” they also identified poor CKM syndrome health—that is, neglect and lack of treatment or symptom reduction among participants who had the condition—to be one major factor in this overlap. Patients with “high genetic dispositions” to AMD and those who had other health conditions, including a history of strokes and peripheral artery disease, were at greatest risk of future AMD. The relationship between CKM and AMD is informed by a variety of potential causes. Metabolic syndrome—one part of CKM—for example, “could lead to oxidative stress and inflammation, which are strongly implicated in AMD pathogenesis.”Limitations of this study included the use of patient records rather than examining CKM in patients directly, as well as patient data coming from individuals who were “generally more affluent and healthier than the broader UK population,” wrote the researchers. Evaluating data from people of different economic backgrounds may have provided different insights, although the authors’ conclusion that “poor CKM health was associated with AMD risk, regardless of genetic disposition” or other factors emphasises the importance of CKM’s consequences among all patient demographics.Click here for the journal source. Fengyue Wu , Kun Xu , Yuanqi Zhao, et al. Associations of cardiovascular-kidney-metabolic syndrome with age-related macular degeneration risk, Am. J. Ophthalmol January 2026. [Epub ahead of print]. This article was developed by the editorial staff in conjunction with experts in the field. In the process, AI may have been among the editorial tools used to meet the goals of human editors, who approved all content.