Coffee drinkers at high risk of primary open-angle glaucoma

A recent Mendelian randomization study has provided evidence that increased coffee intake can put individuals at higher risk of developing primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG), a study reports.

Researchers used data from a genome-wide association study (GWAS) involving 121,824 individuals of European descent to obtain data on single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) associated with coffee consumption (including phenotype 1 and phenotype 2). They also used coffee intake from the MRC-IEU UK Biobank to identify instruments for coffee intake.

Meanwhile, summary-level data for POAG were drawn from the largest publicly available meta-analyses, which included 16,677 POAG patients and 199,580 controls of European descent.

Genetically predicted higher coffee consumption phenotype 1 (cups/day) conferred an increased risk of POAG (odds ratio [OR], 1.241, 95 percent confidence interval [CI], 1.041–1.480; p=0.016). Genetically predicted higher coffee consumption phenotype 2 (high vs no/low) was likewise associated with higher risk of POAG (OR, 1.155, 95 percent CI, 1.038–1.284; p=0.008).

Finally, genetically predicted higher coffee intake from MRC-IEU UK Biobank OpenGWAS also showed a significant association with a higher risk of POAG (OR, 1.727, 95 percent CI, 1.230–2.425; p=0.002). Sensitivity analyses confirmed that the findings were robust to possible pleiotropy.

In light of coffee being widely consumed globally, the findings provide new insights into potential strategies to prevent and manage POAG.