Purpose: To assess the association between genotypes and alleles of the C-460T polymorphism of the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) gene and the risk of wet form of age-related macular degeneration (AMD).
Materials and methods: 100 patients with clinically diagnosed wet form of AMD and 104 healthy individuals were enrolled in this study. The patients were diagnosed by optical coherence tomography, fluorescein angiography and indocyanin green angiography. The allele-specific polymerase chain reaction was used to determine the genotypes of the C-460T polymorphism of the VEGF gene. The odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated using a logistic regression model to assess the assoctiation betweeen genotypes of the C-460T polymorphism and AMD occurrence.
Results: A difference was observed in the genotype distributions between patients and controls. An association (OR 3.04, 95% CI 1.65-5.60) was found between wet form of AMD and the C/T genotype. On the other hand, the T/T genotype displayed the protective effect against the disease.
Conclusion: The C-460T polymorphism of the endothelial growth factor can be considered as a potential marker for the wet form of age-related macular degeneration.