Question:

Which of the following vitamins at higher doses causes cystoid macular edema?

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Think of the lipid-lowering vitamin given in gram doses.
Updated On: Jun 23, 2026
  • Vitamin A
  • Vitamin D
  • Vitamin E
  • Niacin
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The Correct Option is D

Solution and Explanation

Step 1: Cystoid macular edema is fluid-filled cystic spaces in the macula causing painless central vision loss.
Step 2: Niacin (nicotinic acid, vitamin B3), used in high doses for dyslipidemia, is the recognized vitamin cause of cystoid macular edema. Doses of about 3 g per day or more can produce blurred vision, eyelid edema, toxic amblyopia, and notably cystoid macular edema. Importantly, niacin-induced macular edema is non-leaking on fluorescein angiography and is reversible once the drug is stopped. So option (d) is correct.
Step 3: The others do not cause cystoid macular edema. Vitamin A toxicity causes pseudotumor cerebri and papilledema, vitamin D excess causes hypercalcemia and band keratopathy, and vitamin E excess affects coagulation. None give this picture.
Ref: Case Reports in Ophthalmological Medicine, 2013, Article ID 713061.
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