Objective This study aimed to investigate the risk of Alzheimer’s disease among patients with age-related macular degeneration and its association with confounding comorbidities. Method This was a population-based, retrospective cohort study. By accessing data from the National Health Insurance Research Database of Taiwan, we identified 10,578 patients aged 50–100 years who were newly diagnosed with age-related macular degeneration between 2000 and 2012 and 10,578 non- age-related macular degeneration individuals. The comorbidities assessed were osteoporosis, diabetes, cirrhosis, cerebrovascular disease, chronic kidney disease, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, coronary artery disease, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Results Patients with age-related macular degeneration had a 1.23-fold increased risk of their condition advancing to Alzheimer’s disease (aHR = 1.23, 95% CI = 1.04–1.46). The younger patients were diagnosed with age-related macular degeneration, the more likely patients got Alzheimer’s disease (50–64 age group: aHR = 1.97, 95% CI = 1.04–3.73; 65–79 age group: aHR = 1.27, 95% CI = 1.02–1.58; 80–100 age group: aHR = 1.06, 95% CI = 0.78–1.45). In addition, there were significantly higher risks of Alzheimer’s disease for patients with cirrhosis (aHR = 1.50, 95% CI = 1.09–2.06) in the age-related macular degeneration cohort than in the non-age-related macular degeneration cohort. Conclusion Patients with age-related macular degeneration may exhibit a higher risk of Alzheimer’s disease than people without age-related macular degeneration.

Marjolin ulcer (MU) is a malignant tumor that commonly arises from previously injured skin, including burn injuries, traumatic wounds, scars, and other chronic nonhealing inflammatory conditions. It most often develops in deep burn wounds with a prolonged Background: Marjolin ulcers (MUs) are malignant tumors arising from previously injured skin, including burn wounds, scars, chronic ulcers, and other chronic nonhealing inflammatory conditions. They have a potentially long latent period. The authors aimed to establish the prognostic factors for recurrence, metastasis, and disease-specific death related to MU. Methods: The authors performed a comprehensive search of PubMed, Embase, and the Cochrane Library. After assessing the methodologic quality of case series, they performed a meta-analysis and systematic review. Furthermore, the authors used machine learning to predict patient survival time. Results: MUs on the upper limbs, head, and neck had a higher risk of recurrence. Contrastingly, lower grade lesions, absence of lymph node metastasis, and a tumor diameter of less than 10 cm were associated with lower recurrence risk. The risks were unrelated to age and latent period. In addition, patients without lymph node metastasis had a lower risk of developing distant metastasis. Furthermore, the risk of disease-specific death was lower in patients with a lower tumor grade, absent lymph node metastasis, small tumor diameter (<10 cm), and tumors located in regions other than the head and neck. Correlation analysis showed that the age at initial injury was negatively correlated with the latent period of MU. Conclusions: The authors found that tumor grade, tumor site, lymph node status, and tumor size are important predictors of a worse prognosis. To integrate these predictors, the authors created an equation to predict the survival time for individual patients by means of machine learning processes. Moreover, the authors found that MU developed more quickly in older individuals with injuries.

Background This study aimed to investigate the risk of Parkinson’s disease (PD) among patients with age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and its association with confounding comorbidities. Methods A population-based retrospective cohort study was conducted using Longitudinal Health Insurance Database 2000 (LHID2000). We established AMD and non-AMD cohorts from January 1, 2000 to December 31, 2012 to determine the diagnosis of PD. A total of 20,848 patients were enrolled, with 10,424 AMD patients and 10,424 controls matched for age, sex, and index year at a 1:1 ratio. The follow-up period was from the index date of AMD diagnosis to the diagnosis of PD, death, withdrawal from the insurance program, or end of 2013. Multivariable Cox regression analysis was performed to examine the hazard ratio (HR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) for the risk of PD between the AMD and non-AMD cohorts. Result After adjusting for potential confounders, there was a higher risk of developing PD in the AMD cohort than in the non-AMD cohort (adjusted HR = 1.35, 95% CI = 1.16–1.58). A significant association could be observed in both female (aHR = 1.42, 95% CI = 1.13–1.80) and male (aHR = 1.28, 95% CI = 1.05–1.57) patients, aged more than 60 years (60–69: aHR = 1.51, 95% CI = 1.09–2.09, 70–79: aHR = 1.30, 95% CI = 1.05–1.60; 80–100: aHR = 1.40, 95% CI = 1.01–1.95), and with more than one comorbidity (aHR = 1.40, 95% CI = 1.20–1.64). A significant association between increased risk of PD and AMD was observed among patients with comorbidities of osteoporosis (aHR = 1.68, 95% CI = 1.22–2.33), diabetes (aHR = 1.41, 95% CI = 1.12–1.78) and hypertension (aHR = 1.36, 95% CI = 1.15–1.62) and medications of statin (aHR = 1.42, 95% CI = 1.19–1.69) and calcium channel blocker (CCB) (aHR = 1.32, 95% CI = 1.11–1.58). The cumulative incidence of PD was significantly higher over the 12-year follow-up period in AMD cohort (log-rank test, p < 0.001). Conclusions Patients with AMD may exhibit a higher risk of PD than those without AMD.