Causal association among dry/wet age-related macular degeneration,age-related hearing impairment and Alzheimer's disease:a Mendelian randomization study
SHEN Jin'ao
CHEN Chengming
XIE Tingke
HAN Jing
Abstract：Objective To explore the causal relationship of mutual influence among age-related hearing impairment(ARHI),dry/wet age-related macular degeneration(AMD),and Alzheimer's disease(AD).Methods Mendelian randomization(MR)analysis was employed using ARHI-associated genome-wide association study(GWAS)data(330 759 subjects),AD-associated GWAS data(43725 cases and 717979 controls;71880 cases and 383378 controls),dry AMD-associated GWAS data(6065 cases and 251042 controls),and wet AMD-associated GWAS data(4848 cases and 252277 controls).Causal relationships were assessed using inverse-variance weighted(IVW)models,with results expressed as OR and 95%CI.Results MR analysis revealed a causal association between AD and a significant reduction in the risk of wet AMD in European populations[IVW,OR=0.59,95%CI(0.42,0.81),P=0.001 1],while no causal links were observed for other diseases.Sensitivity analyses demonstrated the robustness and reliability of the MR findings.Conclusion This MR analysis demonstrates that AD exerts a protective effect against wet AMD in European populations,while no causal relationship exists between ARHI and AD,or between ARHI and dry/wet AMD.These findings offer novel perspectives for neurodegenerative disease research,though further studies are needed to validate these conclusions.
Keywords：age-related hearing impairmentage-related macular degenerationAlzheimer's diseaseneurodegenerative diseasesMendelian randomization analysisgenome-wide association studycausal associationinstrumental variable analysis
Publication Date：2026-01-31
Online Publishing Date：2026-08-26(First online date of this platform, not the publication date of the document)
Pages：13( 117-129 )