Effects of lutein-containing supplement on visual acuity and vision-related quality of life in the healthy elderly with subjective visual symptoms

Results Intervention with lutein-containing supplement significantly increased BCVA of both eyes (in within-group comparison), whereas placebo showed a similar effect on only the right-side eye without any effect on the left-side eye. For VRQOL, significant improvement was observed in lutein group but was not in placebo group (in within-group comparison).

Methods: Seventeen each subjects were allocated to placebo (placebo group) and lutein-containing supplement (lutein group). Lutein-containing supplement was taken orally for 6 weeks in a daily dose of 1320 mg (30 mg as lutein). Before the start and after the end of 6-week intervention, all subjects underwent determinations of best-spectacle corrected VA (BOVA) and examinations of VRQOL based on vision symptom VAS scores for efficacy evaluation.

Conclusions Lutein-containing supplement is considered to have beneficial effects on the elderly with complaint of depressed VRQOL.

Objectives: To study the potential of lutein-containing supplement to improve visual acuity (VA) and/or vision-related quality of life (VRQOL) in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial with the healthy elderly aged 50 to 70 years who complained of subjective vision symptoms.