Centrum use and progression of age-related cataract in the Age-Related Eye Disease Study - A propensity score approach. AREDS Report No. 21

Purpose: To evaluate the effect of the multivitamin Centrum on the development and progression of age-related lens opacities. Design: Clinic-based prospective cohort study. Participants: Four thousand five hundred ninety individuals with at least one natural lens and photographic follow-up (median, 6.3 years) were assessed for development or progression of lens opacities. Main Outcome Measures: Progression of any lens opacity or type-specific opacity was ascertained from lens photographs taken at baseline and at annual visits beginning at year 2. Methods: The Age-Related Eye Disease Study (AREDS) showed no statistically significant effect of a high-dose antioxidant formulation on progression of lens opacities. Centrum also was provided to approximately two thirds of the study participants. Because Centrum use was elective, a logistic regression model of baseline characteristics was used to generate a propensity score for Centrum use. Repeated-measures logistic regression, adjusted for propensity score and other covariates, was used to evaluate associations of Centrum use and lens opacity. Results: Centrum use, adjusted for propensity score and other covariates, was associated with a reduction in any lens opacity progression (odds ratio [OR] = 0.84, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.72-0.98, P = 0.025). Results for individual lens opacity types suggested that Centrum use was protective for nuclear opacity events (OR = 0.75, 95% CI = 0.61-0.91, P = 0.004). Conclusion: Observational data from the AREDS and other studies suggest that use of a multivitamin may delay the progression of lens opacities. A National Eye Institute-sponsored clinical trial scheduled for completion in 2007 will provide additional data on Centrum use and cataract development.