Macular degeneration

Macular degeneration – damages central vision and affects the ability to focus your gaze when driving, looking at faces or reading. There are two types: dry and wet.

Age-related macular degeneration affects almost 50% of all individuals.

Macular degeneration (AMD) is painless. You may not even know you have the disease until your vision starts to deteriorate. GDD adversely affects activities that require attention to detail, such as reading or writing.

Dry GDD is a more common condition that impairs the ability to see fine details. It can make it difficult to read, use a computer, watch TV, drive etc. The vision deteriorates slowly, so some people may not notice changes in their vision.

Wet macular degeneration is characterised by a sudden and sometimes pronounced deterioration of central vision, usually in one eye. Normally, wet GDD develops in people who have already had dry GDD. It is very important that you contact an eye specialist as soon as possible if you develop unusual symptoms, for example if straight lines appear wavy or central vision becomes blurred.

Dry macular degeneration is caused by the gradual breakdown of photosensitive cells in the macula.

Urinary GDD is caused by the exudation of blood vessels under the macula, which can rupture or cause scarring.

It’s not clear why this happens, but macular degeneration usually develops with age. There are several risk factors associated with macular degeneration:

• Age;
• Smoking;
• Gender;
• Family history of the disease;
• Race;
• Obesity.

As it is an age-related condition, it usually affects both eyes, although it can affect both eyes at the same time.

One of the best ways to detect macular degeneration is with a routine eye examination – which is why it is important to have regular eye examinations to detect changes that have occurred over time.