31/03/2024
31/03/2024

NEW YORK, March 31: Researchers have unveiled a potential breakthrough in predicting individuals' biological age and mortality risk through a non-invasive and rapid scan of the human eyeball. This innovative method could revolutionize how doctors identify individuals who age faster and are consequently at higher risk of early mortality.
While aging affects everyone differently, conventional measures of chronological age may not accurately reflect an individual's physiological decline. However, recent studies suggest that analyzing the retina, the tissue at the back of the eye could offer valuable insights into a person's true biological age and future health outcomes.
In a study conducted in 2022, researchers developed a machine learning model capable of predicting a person's remaining years of life by examining their retina. Remarkably, this algorithm accurately estimated the age of nearly 47,000 middle-aged and elderly adults in the United Kingdom within a narrow bracket of 3.5 years.
Subsequent analysis revealed a compelling correlation between the predicted age of the retina and mortality risk. Individuals with retinas that appeared older than their chronological age were more likely to experience premature death, with each additional year of predicted retinal age associated with a 2 percent increase in the risk of death from any cause over the next 11 years.
Moreover, the study found that a higher retinal age gap was particularly indicative of non-cardiovascular/non-cancer mortality, suggesting a potential link between retinal health and neurological diseases. While the precise mechanisms underlying this association remain unclear, the retina's sensitivity to age-related damage underscores its potential as a diagnostic tool for assessing overall health and mortality risk.
Unlike other predictors of biological age, such as neuroimaging or DNA methylation clocks, retinal scans offer a quick, cost-effective, and non-invasive means of evaluating physiological aging. With further research, clinicians may leverage this innovative approach to enhance early detection and intervention strategies for age-related diseases.
Although the study's findings highlight the promising utility of retinal scans in predicting mortality risk, additional research is needed to elucidate the biological mechanisms driving this relationship. Nevertheless, the growing body of evidence supporting the retina's role in the aging process suggests that this simple diagnostic tool could have profound implications for preventive healthcare and longevity.