Smoking and macular degeneration linked

LONDON, Dec 19, 2005 (UPI via COMTEX) -- British scientists say they've determined that the number of pack years of cigarette smoking is a major determinant of risk for macular degeneration.

Researchers say passive smoking nearly doubles the risk of the progressively degenerative eye disease, age-related macular degeneration.

The macula lies at the center of the retina at the back of the eye. It's crucial for fine central vision, which is essential for certain tasks, such as reading and driving.

The risk of macular degeneration increases once someone is older than 60 years and is a leading cause of partial sightedness and blindness in many European nations and the United States.

The researchers found the more a person smoked, the greater were their chances of developing age related macular degeneration, and the results showed it was the amount smoked, rather than whether someone had ever smoked, that was critical.

Regularly smoking a pack or more a day for 40 years almost tripled the risk of age related macular degeneration compared with those who did not smoke, the research showed.

Smoking increased the risk of both types of macular degeneration -- geographic atrophy and choroidal neovascularisation.

The study is reported in the British Journal of Opthalmology.

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