Don,
Decided to see if there were any follow ups: again good results. Given the
high safety profile of these compounds I think anyone with AMD should
think seriously about these findings. Ask your doctor. Any bods here who
would care to give an opinion? Second abstract from BMC ophthalamo, freely
available. Go to pubmed, key in PMID number, follow links on right hand
side.
I still don't understand why they don't add R Lipoic Acid to the mix. To
understand why look up Professor Ames at
www.juvenon.com. CF. PNAS, Feb
19,2002,
Feeding acetyl-L-carnitine and lipoic acid to old rats
significantly improves metabolic function while
decreasing oxidative stress
Thanks,
John.
[Metabolic therapy for early treatment of age-related macular
degeneration]
[Article in Hungarian]
Currently, age-related macular degeneration is one of the most common eye
diseases causing severe and permanent loss of vision. This disease is
estimated to affect approximately 300-500 thousand Hungarians. While
earlier no treatment was available, in the recent decade an antioxidant
therapy became very popular using combinations of high dosage antioxidant
vitamins C, E, beta carotene and zinc. Based on theoretical concepts and
mostly in vitro experiences, this combination was thought to be effective
through neutralizing reactive oxygen species. According to a large
clinical trial (AREDS) it reduced progression of intermediate state
disease to advanced state, but did not influence early disease. This
original combination, due to potential severe side effects, is not on the
market anymore. However, the efficacy of modified formulas has not been
proved yet. Recently, the metabolic therapy, a combination of omega-3
fatty acids, coenzyme Q10 and acetyl-L-carnitine has been introduced for
treating early age-related macular degeneration through improving
mitochondrial dysfunction, specifically improving lipid metabolism and ATP
production in the retinal pigment epithelium, improving photoreceptor
turnover and reducing generation of reactive oxygen species. According to
a pilot study and a randomized, placebo-controlled, double blind clinical
trial, both central visual field and visual acuity slightly improved after
3-6 months of treatment and they remained unchanged by the end of the
study. The difference was statistically significant as compared to the
base line or to controls. These functional changes were accompanied by an
improvement in fundus alterations: drusen covered area decreased
significantly as compared to the base line or to control.
Characteristically, all these changes were more marked in less affected
eyes. A prospective case study on long-term treatment confirmed these
observations. With an exception that after slight improvement, visual
functions remained stable, drusen regression continued for years.
Sometimes significant regression of drusen was found even in intermediate
and advanced cases. All these findings strongly suggested that the
metabolic therapy may be the first choice for treating age-related macular
degeneration. Currently, this is the only combination of ingredients
corresponding to the recommended daily allowance, and at the same time,
which showed clinically proved efficacy.
PMID: 18039616 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
TOZAL Study: an open case control study of an oral antioxidant and omega-3
supplement for dry AMD.
Vitreo-Retinal Associates of New Jersey, Ridgewood, New Jersey 07450, USA.
franciscangemi at (no spam) aol.com
BACKGROUND: The primary objective of this prospective study was to measure
the change from baseline in visual function--Best-Corrected Visual Acuity
(BCVA) via the Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study (ETDRS) chart,
contrast sensitivity, central 10 degree visual fields and retinal imaging
(angiograms and photographs) at 6 months in subjects with atrophic (dry)
age-related macular degeneration treated with a targeted nutritional
supplement. METHODS: 37 mixed gender patients with a mean age of 76.3 +/-
7.8 years were enrolled at 5 independent study sites and received standard
of care with a novel formulation of a nutritional supplement. Results were
compared to a placebo cohort constructed from the literature that was
matched for inclusion and exclusion criteria. A paired t-test was used to
test a null hypothesis and a two-sided alpha level of 0.05 was used to
determine statistical significance. RESULTS: 76.7% of subjects receiving
the nutritional supplement demonstrated stabilization or improvement of
BCVA at 6 months. Subjects gained an average of 0.0541 logMAR or one-half
of a line of visual acuity (VA) over the 6-month period. There was a
statistically significant improvement in VA from baseline with P = .045.
The results provide strong evidence that the treatment being studied
produces an improvement in VA. CONCLUSION: Treatment with this unique
nutritional supplement increased VA above the expected baseline decrease
in the majority of patients in this population with dry macular
degeneration. The results of the TOZAL study agree with the LAST and
CARMIS studies and are predictive for positive visual acuity outcomes in
the AREDS II trial. However, patients will likely require supplementation
for longer than 6 months to effect changes in additional visual
parameters.
PMID: 17324285 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
"John Hasenkam" <johnh at (no spam) goawayplease.com> wrote in message
news:pPqdnWVey-UaybPVnZ2dnUVZ_gadnZ2d at (no spam) westnet.com.au...
Don,
I think during our prior discussion I mentioned the below but just in
case. This seems to be a promising approach and I hope there have been
some follow up studies on this:
Ophthalmologica. 2005 May-Jun;219(3):154-66.Click here to
Improvement of visual functions and fundus alterations in early
age-related macular degeneration treated with a combination of
acetyl-L-carnitine, n-3 fatty acids, and coenzyme Q10.
The aim of this randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical
trial was to determine the efficacy of a combination of
acetyl-L-carnitine, n-3 fatty acids, and coenzyme Q10 (Phototrop) on the
visual functions and fundus alterations in early age-related macular
degeneration (AMD). One hundred and six patients with a clinical
diagnosis of early AMD were randomized to the treated or control groups.
The primary efficacy variable was the change in the visual field mean
defect (VFMD) from baseline to 12 months of treatment, with secondary
efficacy parameters: visual acuity (Snellen chart and ETDRS chart),
foveal sensitivity as measured by perimetry, and fundus alterations as
evaluated according to the criteria of the International Classification
and Grading System for AMD. The mean change in all four parameters of
visual functions showed significant improvement in the treated group by
the end of the study period. In addition, in the treated group only 1 out
of 48 cases (2%) while in the placebo group 9 out of 53 (17%) showed
clinically significant (>2.0 dB) worsening in VFMD (p = 0.006, odds
ratio: 10.93). Decrease in drusen-covered area of treated eyes was also
statistically significant as compared to placebo when either the most
affected eyes (p = 0.045) or the less affected eyes (p = 0.017) were
considered. These findings strongly suggested that an appropriate
combination of compounds which affect mitochondrial lipid metabolism, may
improve and subsequently stabilize visual functions, and it may also
improve fundus alterations in patients affected by early AMD.
PMID: 15947501 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
"Don W" <dwilgus at (no spam) prodigy.net> wrote in message
news:pMiXj.1068$BL6.776 at (no spam) nlpi070.nbdc.sbc.com...
John, what is this "vaguely" stuff?? Yup, it was me, but it was about
tossing zinc into some equation. Understand about typo's, but have
adopted it! Hope, besides everything else, you are doing ok, status quo
on this end.
Don W.
"John Hasenkam" <johnh at (no spam) goawayplease.com> wrote in message
news:AKOdnQnNJLM-u7DVnZ2dnUVZ_gWdnZ2d at (no spam) westnet.com.au...
I vaguely remember you Don. Were you the one involved in a discussion
about Stargardts? If so, I hope your treatment for AMD(?) is helping.
Nah, that was a typo, rushing too much but I am a terrible proof reader
and I hate reading spreadsheets!
"Don W" <dwilgus at (no spam) prodigy.net> wrote in message
news:ka9Xj.2303$hJ5.1256 at (no spam) nlpi068.nbdc.sbc.com...
John,
Like "in my good idea".
Don W.
