Macular Degeneration
Macular Degeneration is an eye disease that negatively impacts a person’s central vision. This happens when the macula, which is located in the back of the eye, becomes damaged. In healthy eyes, light passes through the macula on to the retina, sending a message to the brain. The brain then interprets it, helping you understand the images and objects that you see.
With an impaired macula, this flow of light and messaging to the brain is disrupted, resulting in either a partial or complete loss of central vision. Central vision refers to the things that you can see when you look straight ahead. Driving, reading, sewing, and seeing clearly in front of you becomes problematic for someone with Macular Degeneration.
Common Symptoms of Macular Degeneration
What are the most common symptoms?
- Blind spots
- Blurriness
- Cloudy vision
- Distorted images
- Fuzzy-looking vision
- Shadows or dark spots on an image
Macular Degeneration can be difficult to diagnose because the symptoms of this eye disease can be connected to other things, such as a smoking habit, disrupted sleep, or stress. Some people may not even notice anything until their vision deteriorates enough to be of concern.
Simply being aware of these symptoms is an important step in successfully managing the disease.
To someone with Macular Degeneration, colors can seem paler than in reality or straight lines can appear wavy. Dark spots can be particularly dangerous when driving or operating machinery. That’s why it’s critical to have your eyes checked regularly, especially if there is a history of the disease in your family or if you’re at risk for developing the condition.
If you’re experiencing any of these symptoms, contact our helpful staff at {PracticeName} to schedule an appointment for an eye exam as soon as possible.
High Risk of Macular Degeneration
Common Risk Factors Include
There are some people who have a higher risk of Macular Degeneration. Age, gender, and genetics are among the top risk factors.
In addition to these 3 high risk factors, there are other elements of a patient’s personal lifestyle that may put them at risk for getting this eye disease.
These include:
- Extreme UV ray exposure
- Lack of physical movement
- Medication
- Obesity
- Smoking habits
- Unhealthy diet
The good news is that these can be improved by making some small changes. A diet rich in green vegetables, regular exercise, and quitting smoking can lower your risk of vision loss due to Macular Degeneration.
Women tend to develop Macular Degeneration at significantly higher rates than men. One suspected reason is due to their higher life expectancy, although others attribute it to social and economic causes.
Family history is another factor that puts someone at risk for Macular Degeneration. If a parent or grandparent had it, you may be genetically predisposed to develop the condition, as well.
Juvenile Macular Degeneration
This condition can manifest itself in school, sports, or extracurricular activities. A loss of central vision can impact a child’s ability to learn and advance in their studies every year. In later stages, the ability to see sharp color can be affected. Some symptoms may go unnoticed for years until the child gets older.
If Macular Degeneration runs in your family, getting checked sooner rather than later is essential for an early diagnosis and treatment.
How is Macular Degeneration Treated?
A number of devices such as magnifiers and telescopes can enlarge images or objects, allowing you to see things in more detail. Some vision aids are placed on top of special glasses to help with driving, writing, or using a computer. Other options include hand held magnifiers that are used for reading a book or newspaper.
Eyecare Specialties has some of the most cutting-edge and advanced technologies to quickly and effectively test for Macular Degeneration. Let our eye doctors and the talented, caring staff help provide you with the tools to improve your vision and get back to doing the things you enjoy.
Macular degeneration (also called AMD, ARMD, or age-related macular degeneration) is an age-related condition in which the most sensitive part of the retina, called the macula, starts to break down and lose its ability to create clear visual images.
Dry macular degeneration symptoms include: consistent, slightly blurred vision within your central visual field. You may have difficulty in recognizing faces. And have a sudden need for more light while reading or working. The dry form of this disease gets progressively worse, over time. Wet macular degeneration symptoms include: a distortion of straight lines and an inability to focus properly on a single point within a grid. Wet macular degeneration is an advanced stage of the disease, and often results in blind spots and loss of centralized vision.
Macular degeneration symptoms vary based on the particular form of the disease (dry or wet), and the stage the disease at the time it is discovered.
There is as yet no outright cure for macular degeneration, but some treatments may delay its progression or even improve vision.