Macular Degeneration

Age-Related Macular Degeneration (ARMD)

Macular degeneration, also known as age-related macular degeneration (AMD or ARMD), is a medical condition which may result in blurred or no vision in the center of the visual field. Early on there are often no symptoms. Over time, however, some people experience a gradual worsening of vision that may affect one or both eyes. While it does not result in complete blindness, loss of central vision can make it hard to recognize faces, drive, read, or perform other activities of daily life. Visual hallucinations may also occur but these are not serious and do not represent a mental illness. The main and most common risk factors are:

1.  Age:
2.  Smoking
3.  ARMD Family history.

4.  Female.

5.  Caucasians.
6.  Prolonged Sun Exposure

In the case of Smoking, it increases a person’s chances of developing AMD by two to five fold. Because the retina has a high rate of oxygen consumption, anything that affects oxygen delivery to the retina may affect vision. Smoking causes oxidative damage, which may contribute to the development and progression of this disease.

“One-third of adults over 75 are affected by AMD.”

What a person with AMD sees

Are you experiencing blurring or a blind spot in the center of your vision? Are you seeing blurry areas on a printed page? Do some straight lines appear wavy? Are there dark spaces or areas in the center of your vision? It might be age-related macular degeneration.

Age-Related Macular Degeneration (AMD) is a gradual, progressive, painless deterioration of the macula, which is the small area in the center of the retina that gives us our detailed vision. This is why someone with vision loss from macular degeneration may have trouble reading mail or newspapers but have no trouble spotting an object off to the side or while walking around, even in unfamiliar places.

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