Melatonin use associated with lower risk for AMD development, progression in older adults
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Key takeaways:
- Among patients with nonexudative AMD, melatonin use was associated with a lower risk for progression.
- Melatonin use also was associated with a lower risk for AMD diagnosis among those with no history of AMD.
Melatonin use was associated with a decreased risk for both development and progression of age-related macular degeneration among adults aged 50 years or older, according to a study published in JAMA Ophthalmology.
“Melatonin, a hormone known for its role in regulating sleep-wake cycles, is often used for the treatment of sleep disorders, such as insomnia,” Hejin Jeong, BA, from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, and colleagues wrote. “However, studies in both animal models and humans have suggested that melatonin may also possess potent antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antiangiogenic and mitochondrial-protective properties.”
In a retrospective cohort study, researchers used data from TriNetX to identify 121,523 adults aged 50 years or older with no history of AMD and 116,675 patients with a history of nonexudative AMD, all of whom were queried for melatonin use. The primary outcome was association between melatonin use and the development and progression of AMD.
Of the AMD-naïve patients, 4,848 had a history of melatonin use (mean age, 68.24 years; 56.5% women), and of 66,253 patients in the preexisting nonexudative AMD group, 4,350 had a history of melatonin use (mean age, 80.21 years; 61.1% women).
Among patients aged 50 years or older, the melatonin use group had a significantly reduced risk for developing AMD compared with the control group (RR = 0.42), with researchers reporting similar reductions in older subsets of patients.
In the nonexudative AMD group, melatonin use was associated with a lower risk for AMD progression (RR = 0.38).
“The protective influence of melatonin on [retinal pigmented epithelial] cells and its ability to reduce oxidative stress and resulting VEGF overexpression may contribute to its promising role in AMD management,” Jeong and colleagues wrote. “This study was primarily exploratory, and overall differences in lifestyle habits and engagement with the health care system between melatonin users and nonusers could have influenced the associations observed; however, the results provide a rationale for future exploration of the use of melatonin in AMD prevention and management.”
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