Eye Disease Treatment

Your eye care professional will check your vision and check for signs of AMD. He or she may use dilation drops to dilate, or widen, your pupils and allow the doctor to see more clearly into your eye’s back surface.

Dry AMD often occurs gradually and you may not notice any change to your vision at first; however, over time it can lead to significant loss of central vision and become severe enough for blindness.

Dry Macular Degeneration

AMD (Age-related Macular Degeneration) is a progressive disease that gradually destroys central vision. This occurs when light-sensing cells in your macula (an area near the center of your visual field) begin to break down, leading to straight lines becoming wavy or blurry and eventually leading to blind spots in your visual field. Loss of central vision may impact everyday activities like driving, reading and recognising faces while peripheral (side) vision usually remains unaffected. Although the exact causes of dry macular degeneration remain unclear; factors including tissue thinning/drusen deposits under retina deposits under retina as well as poor diet are all believed to contribute to its development.

Blurred vision is often the initial telltale sign of dry macular degeneration. As more light-sensing cells cease to function normally, things appear wavy or blurry – usually disappearing with bright lighting conditions. As the condition worsens further, people begin noticing an increasingly large blind spot at their center of vision.

Dry macular degeneration doesn’t progress as rapidly as wet macular degeneration; thus vision loss can be mitigated through taking specific vitamins and minerals as well as getting regular dilated eye exams. Maintaining healthy lifestyle habits like eating a diet rich in nutrients and avoiding tobacco smoke may also help slow its progression; the key is recognizing any changes early so treatment can begin as quickly as possible.

Wet macular degeneration (WMD) is less prevalent than dry AMD and occurs when abnormal blood vessels formed under the retina leak fluid, creating blind spots in your visual field. Treatment options for Wet AMD include using anti-VEGF drugs – injections designed to decrease growth of new abnormal blood vessels while slowing leakage from existing ones – or laser surgery which aims high energy beams of light directly at new blood vessels to destroy them.

Early Symptoms

Age-related macular degeneration is a progressive eye condition that gradually destroys central vision. Affecting the macula – responsible for reading, driving and seeing fine details – this disease poses many risk factors, the major one being advanced age; additional ones being family history as well as smoking being significant ones; to better understand these causes the National Institutes of Health is funding several research studies dedicated to macular degeneration.

Dry macular degeneration involves yellow deposits known as drusen accumulating under the retina, leading to blurry vision or permanent blindness over time. Early AMD usually does not cause noticeable vision changes at first; over time however, straight lines become crooked and colors no longer appear vibrantly.

At times it is necessary to monitor your vision closely in order to be prepared if any significant changes occur in central vision. An eye care professional will examine your eyes using special instruments which measure macula thickness; dilate your pupils using drops that dilate pupils; view back of eye, etc. They may even ask you to read an Amsler grid to measure central vision.

Wet macular degeneration shares similar symptoms to dry AMD, although sudden vision changes may occur more rapidly. Wet AMD occurs when abnormal blood vessels begin growing beneath the retina and leaking fluid under it; people living with wet macular degeneration are more likely to have coexisting conditions like high blood pressure, elevated cholesterol levels, emphysema or atherosclerosis than with dry AMD.

Diet can help slow the progression of AMD by including dark leafy greens, fruits and vegetables with yellow or orange hues and dark chocolate in your daily meals. Also avoid smoking and protect your eyes from ultraviolet rays by protecting from direct sunlight exposure. Supplements available that can aid those at greater risk for wet AMD include vitamins C & E, zinc and copper and lutein.

Diagnosis

Over 15 million Americans suffer from age-related macular degeneration (AMD), which degrades central vision. Sharp central vision is essential for reading, driving and other tasks that require sharp detail vision such as reading or driving.

AMD starts when light-sensitive cells in the macula become damaged, blurring central vision gradually over time. You may not initially detect any loss of vision; eventually straight lines become wavy and your central field of view appears dark or empty – without impacting peripheral (side) vision but making daily activities challenging. UF Health ophthalmologists have made great strides toward slowing AMD progression and even recovering some lost sight.

Early detection is key to successful treatment, so regular dilated eye exams should be scheduled in order to assess your vision status. An eye care provider will use an Amsler grid chart to detect any wavy, blurry, or blank spots within your field of vision. An ophthalmologist may use fluorescein angiography or optical coherence tomography angiography laser scans of the retina as a laser test method in order to spot changes within macula or retina areas of interest.

Macular degeneration cannot be cured, but nutritional supplements may help slow its progress. Your ophthalmologist will advise on the appropriate dosage based on your unique situation and, for wet AMD patients, medication will be injected directly into the eye to treat abnormal blood vessels that form in this form of AMD.

Wet macular degeneration (WMD) is less frequent but more serious than dry AMD, occurring when new blood vessels form under the retina and leak fluid or blood, raising and damaging the macula and raising vision loss quickly and severely. Contacting us immediately is advised if you notice sudden worsening of central vision, visual distortions or sudden worsening in central vision or sudden worsening due to visual distortions resulting from wet AMD; treatments include laser surgery, injections directly into eye, photodynamic therapy as well as drug therapies used against new blood vessel growth by inhibiting an inhibitor known as vascular endothelial growth factor or VEGF.

Treatment

Early diagnosis of AMD can reduce vision loss significantly. That means regular visits to your ophthalmologist and being aware of any changes to your vision that you notice – such as reduced intensity of colors or visual distortions or even blind spots appearing within your field of vision. If any such symptoms arise, make an appointment immediately with your ophthalmologist.

AMD affects central vision, which is necessary for activities such as reading, driving and recognising faces. As it progresses over time, its symptoms worsen. Although AMD may lead to vision loss for some individuals, there are effective treatments available which may delay this loss and enable individuals to continue living their lives as best possible.

While the exact cause of AMD remains unknown, its primary risk factors include age and family history of this condition. Genetics is strongly tied to AMD; those with an immediate family member afflicted by it have an increased chance of contracting it themselves. Other risk factors for AMD include smoking and following diets high in carbohydrates that negatively impact retinal oxygen flow.

Macular degeneration comes in two varieties, dry and wet. Dry macular degeneration is the more frequent form, wherein the macula thins and breaks down, becoming damaged further and leading to accumulation of drusen beneath the retina resulting in vision loss over time; however, wet macular degeneration is much more serious in terms of vision loss potential.

Wet macular degeneration occurs when abnormal blood vessels grow beneath the retina and leak fluid, lifting the macula out of its regular position at the back of your eye and distorting central vision, leading to blurry or dark areas at the center of your field of view. Common symptoms of wet AMD include straight lines that appear bent or distorted as well as small blind spots in your central vision.

There are various treatments for wet AMD that may help halt its progression, including injections and laser surgery. One effective anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (anti-VEGF) injection may reduce abnormal blood vessels by slowing any leakage that may occur; another option would be laser surgery in which an eye surgeon shines a laser light beam onto abnormal vessels to shrink them and stop leakage.