Effects of lutein supplementation in age-related macular degeneration

PLoS One. 2019 Dec 30;14(12):e0227048. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0227048. eCollection 2019.

Abstract

The purpose of this meta-analysis was to evaluate the effects of lutein supplementation on macular pigment optical density (MPOD) in randomized controlled trials involving patients with age-related macular degeneration (AMD). A comprehensive search of the literature was performed in PubMed, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Chinese Biomedical Literature Database, and Wan Fang database through December 2018. Nine randomized controlled trials involving 920 eyes (855 with AMD) were included. Meta-analysis suggested that lutein supplementation (10 or 20 mg per day) was associated with an increase in MPOD (mean difference (MD) 0.07; 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.03 to 0.10), visual acuity (MD 0.28; 95%CI 0.06 to 0.50) and contrast sensitivity (MD 0.26; 95%CI 0.22 to 0.30). Stratified analyses showed the increase in MPOD to be faster and greater with higher dose and longer treatment. The available evidence suggests that dietary lutein may be beneficial to AMD patients and the higher dose could make MPOD increase in a shorter time.

Publication types

  • Meta-Analysis
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Arabidopsis Proteins
  • Dietary Supplements*
  • Dose-Response Relationship, Drug
  • Drug Administration Schedule
  • Humans
  • Lutein / administration & dosage*
  • Macula Lutea / drug effects*
  • Macula Lutea / physiopathology
  • Macular Degeneration / diet therapy*
  • Macular Degeneration / physiopathology
  • Macular Pigment / physiology*
  • Nuclear Proteins
  • Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic
  • Treatment Outcome
  • Visual Acuity / drug effects
  • Visual Acuity / physiology

Substances

  • Arabidopsis Proteins
  • Macular Pigment
  • Nuclear Proteins
  • TIC protein, Arabidopsis
  • Lutein

Grants and funding

This study was supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 81670869). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.