To assess risk factors for epiretinal membranes (ERM) and examine their interactions in a nationally representative U.S. dataset.

Data from the 2005–2008 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) were analyzed, a nationally representative U.S. dataset. ERM was identified via retinal imaging based on the presence of cellophane changes. Key predictors included age group, eye surgery history, and refractive error, with additional demographic and health-related covariates. Weighted univariate and multiple logistic regression models were used to assess associations and interaction effects between eye surgery and refractive error.

Totally 3925 participants were analyzed. Older age, eye surgery, and refractive errors were significantly associated with ERM. Compared to those under 65y, the odds ratio (OR) for ERM was 3.08 for ages 65–75y (P=0.0014) and 4.76 for ages 75+ years (P=0.0069). Eye surgery increased ERM risk (OR=3.48, P=0.0018). Moderate to high hyperopia and myopia were also associated with ERM (OR=2.65 and 1.80, respectively). A significant interaction between refractive error and eye surgery was observed (P<0.0001). Moderate to high myopia was associated with ERM only in those without eye surgery (OR=1.92, P=0.0443). Eye surgery was most strongly associated with ERM in the emmetropic group (OR=3.60, P=0.0027), followed by the moderate to high myopia group (OR=3.01, P=0.0031).

ERM is significantly associated with aging, eye surgery, and refractive errors. The interaction between eye surgery and refractive error modifies ERM risk and highlights the importance of considering combined effects in clinical risk assessments. These findings may help guide individualized ERM risk assessment that may inform personalized approaches to ERM prevention and management.

Although pediatric myopia is well researched, adult‐onset myopia remains poorly understood. This study investigated the associations between serum lipid biomarkers and adult‐onset myopia, and the potential mediating mechanisms.

This prospective population‐based cohort study included 248,682 UK Biobank participants (aged 37–73 years) without myopia at baseline in 2006–2010. Seven lipid biomarkers—namely, apolipoprotein A (APOA), apolipoprotein B (APOB), total cholesterol, high‐density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL‐C), low‐density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL‐C), lipoprotein A, and triglycerides—were analyzed. Hazard ratios (HRs) were estimated in Cox proportional hazard models adjusted for sociodemographics, lifestyle factors, and comorbidities. Nonlinear relationships were evaluated by restricted cubic spline (RCS) analysis. Robustness was evaluated by sensitivity analysis. The roles of inflammation (C‐reactive protein), glucose homeostasis, insulin‐like growth factor 1 (IGF‐1), vitamin D, and testosterone were assessed by mediation analysis.

Over a median 15.16 years of follow‐up, 27,929 (11.2%) of the study participants developed myopia. Elevated APOA (HR: 1.28, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.21–1.35) and HDL‐C (HR: 1.22, 95%CI: 1.17–1.27) were associated with a significant increase in the risk of myopia (both p < 0.001). Conversely, higher levels of APOB (HR: 0.91, 95%CI: 0.86–0.96), LDL‐C (HR: 0.96, 95%CI: 0.95–0.98), total cholesterol (HR: 0.99, 95%CI: 0.97–1.00), and triglycerides (HR: 0.97, 95%CI: 0.95–0.98) correlated with a reduced risk of myopia (all p < 0.05). There was no significant association between the lipoprotein A level and myopia. RCS analysis revealed the following nonlinear relationships: APOA (inverted U‐shaped, inflection at 1.8 g/L; p < 0.0001), HDL‐C (threshold effect at 1.5 mmol/L; p = 0.0021), and triglycerides (inverted U‐shaped, inflection at 1.2 mmol/L; p = 0.0356). The results remained consistent after excluding participants who had an eye infection or underwent ophthalmic surgery in the 4 weeks before the baseline assessment. Key mediators identified were vitamin D (explaining 16.21%–53.69% of associations), glucose (5.78%–13.32%), testosterone (0.68%–19.17%), C‐reactive protein (0.49%–8.63%), and IGF‐1 (0.55%–3.55%).

Specific lipid profiles demonstrated associations with the risk of adult‐onset myopia, with nonlinear dose‐response patterns. Vitamin D, systemic inflammation, and hormonal pathways may partially mediate these relationships. These findings advance our understanding of the metabolic factors contributing to the development of refractive error and suggest novel targets for preventive strategies, including a lifelong approach to the management of adult‐onset myopia.

To investigate the possible relationship between inflammatory biomarkers in the peripheral blood of patients with branch retinal vein occlusion (BRVO).

A total of 63 BRVO patients were enrolled in this cross-sectional observational study. Meanwhile, 63 age- and gender-matched cataract patients were included as controls. Complete blood count and biochemical tests were performed, and inflammatory biomarkers including platelet to lymphocyte ratio (PLR), red blood cell distribution width to albumin ratio (RAR), neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR), systemic immune inflammation index (SII), and monocyte to high density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio (MHR) were compared between the two groups.

There were no significant differences between the two groups in terms of age, sex, and prevalence of diabetes mellitus. Compared with the controls, patients with BRVO had a higher prevalence of hypertension and higher body mass index (BMI). Red blood cell distribution width (RDW), triglycerides, MHR, NLR, and RAR were elevated, whereas lymphocyte count and high-density lipoprotein were decreased in the BRVO group. Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that NLR (adjusted OR=1.686, 95%CI 1.075-2.646), RAR (adjusted OR=8.930, 95%CI 1.911-41.730), and body mass index (BMI; adjusted OR=1.174, 95%CI 1.010-1.365) were significantly associated with the risk of BRVO. In the receiver operating characteristic analysis, the area under the curve for NLR, RAR, and BMI were 0.602, 0.630, and 0.603, respectively. The sensitivity and specificity were 61.9% and 60.3%, 38.1% and 82.5%, and 61.9% and 57.1%, respectively.

Peripheral blood inflammatory biomarkers are elevated in BRVO patients, suggesting systemic inflammation involvement. NLR, RAR, and BMI are positively correlated with BRVO. Monitoring NLR and RAR and strict weight control may be beneficial for the prevention and treatment of BRVO.

To investigate the association between central serous chorioretinopathy (CSC) and Helicobacter pylori (Hp) by summarizing all available evidence.

The Scopus, Embase, EBSCO, PubMed, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library databases for all relevant studies published from inception to October 2022 were searched, and manually searched for relevant reference lists as a supplement. Studies investigating the association between CSC and Hp infection were included. Finally, 8 case-control studies were included in the Meta-analysis after study selection.

The results showed no significant correlation between Hp infection and CSC [odds ratio (OR) 1.89, 95% confidential interval (CI) 0.58–6.15, I²=96%, P=0.29]. After subgroup analysis based on the degree of development of the study (developing/developed countries), it was found that the results of the two subgroups were the same as the whole, and no significant difference between the two subgroups existed. Meta-regression showed that the effect of sample size on heterogeneity among studies was more prominent (P<0.01, adjusted R²=89.72%), which can explain 89.72% of the sources of heterogeneity.

This Meta-analysis reveals no significant correlation between Hp infection and CSC, which still warrants further well-designed extensive sample studies to reach a more reliable conclusion and promote a better understanding of the treatment of CSC.