Age Related Macular Degeneration (amd) - Symptoms, Causes and Treatment

Age-Related Macular Degeneration Risk Factors

The phrase "age-related macular degeneration" (AMD) refers to the increased risk of macular degeneration with aging. However, several circumstances can cause macular degeneration to manifest in people at earlier ages.

Age is not the only risk factor for macular degeneration; other considerations include

• having a history of macular degeneration in your family
• having a weight problem
• smoking
• having hypertension, or elevated blood pressure
• eating a lot of fat, especially saturated fat

Age-Related Macular Degeneration Complications 

It might be difficult to do several tasks if you lose your center vision. The degree of your visual impairment may prevent you from being able to read proficiently, identify faces, move, cook, and make repairs around the house. You might also become blind if you have severe AMD. Anxiety and despair might result from changes in your way of living. Visual hallucinations are a symptom of Charles Bonnet syndrome, which is experienced by certain AMD patients.

Age-Related Macular Degeneration Diagnosis

Annual eye exams are crucial since macular degeneration seldom exhibits symptoms in its early stages. They will assist your doctor in identifying the illness early and initiating therapy. Your eye doctor examines your retina and macula to look for any abnormalities during an examination. Your doctor could request one or more of the following tests:

• Amsler grid: The Amsler grid is a test that consists of a straight-line grid with a large dot in the middle. You can be asked to point out grid lines or areas that appear wavy, fuzzy, or broken by your healthcare practitioner. Significant distortion might be a sign of advanced macular degeneration or a sign that the condition is growing worse. This is something you may use at home to keep an eye on your symptoms and detect any changes.
• Dilated eye exam: After administering drops to dilate your eyes, your healthcare professional will use a special lens to examine the interior of your eyes.
• Fluorescein angiography: A yellow injected into a vein in your arm is followed by a specialized camera as it passes through the blood vessels in your eye. Any leaking under your macula may be seen.
• Optical coherence tomography (OCT): This imaging device captures finely detailed pictures of your retina and macula, which are located at the rear of your eye. Neither invasive nor uncomfortable is optical coherence tomography. All you have to do is stare into a lens as the device snaps images.
• Optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA): This diagnostic technique makes use of the OCT scanning instrument and laser light reflection rather than fluorescein dye. It creates three-dimensional pictures of the blood flow via your eye in a matter of seconds.