Abstract
OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the age-dependency of amplitudes and implicit times in the electroretinograms (ERGs) of healthy individuals and provide clinicians and researchers with a reference for a variety of stimulus paradigms. DESIGN AND METHODS: Full-field electroretinography was conducted on 73 healthy participants aged 14-73 using an extended ISCEV standard protocol that included an additional 9 Hz flicker stimulus for assessing rod function and special paradigms for isolated On-Off and S-cone responses. Correlation coefficients and best-fit regression models for each parameter's age-dependency were calculated. RESULTS: Dark-adapted ERGs, in particular, displayed notable age-related alterations. The attenuation and delay of the b-wave with higher age were most significant in the dark-adapted, rod-driven 0.001 cd s/m(2) flash ERG. The age-dependent reduction of the a-wave amplitude was strongest in the standard dark-adapted 3 cd s/m(2) flash condition. Cone-driven, light-adapted responses to either flash or flicker stimuli displayed comparatively small alterations at higher age. S-cone function tended to diminish at an early age, but the effect was not significant in the whole population. CONCLUSION: The results suggest that rod and cone function decline at different rates with age, with rods being generally more affected by aging. Nonetheless, response amplitudes displayed a wide variability across the whole sample.