dadas

Is There Hope for Those With AMD?

Living with age-related macular degeneration can be debilitating in numerous ways.Not only can the loss of vision make it difficult for you to live a life as you would like, it can also affect you mentally and cause you to isolate yourself.To be certain, there are things that can be done to help individuals who have macular degeneration to cope with the matter successfully.Here are some things that you can do which will help to provide hope for you during this difficult time. First of all, it`s important for you to understand that there may be things that can be done to help slow the progression of age-related macular degeneration. Several techniques have shown to be effective in doing so, including leading a healthy lifestyle in the way that you eat and the exercise that you get. Fruits and vegetables, in particular, green, leafy vegetables should be a regular part of your diet. When they are, you will be getting the nutrients in the antioxidants that are necessary to help control the problem and if possible, to keep it from occurring as quickly. It is also very important for you to educate yourself about macular degeneration when you have the condition. Although you are still likely to rely on your eye doctor for the medical information that you need, there is plenty of information available that you can study. Just make sure that you are getting the information about macular degeneration from a reliable source. That is true, regardless of whether you`re looking on the Internet for the information or if you are thumbing through books at your local library. The more you understand about what is amd , the more likely it is going to be that you will make wise choices for your treatment and lifestyle. Finally, look for individuals in your area that may also be suffering with the same condition. In more populated areas of the country, there are likely to be groups that meet on a regular basis who have this and similar ailments. This gives you the opportunity to discuss your problem with somebody that actually understands what you are going through. You may also find that connecting with individuals in this way helps you to maintain a positive outlook about your macular degeneration and about life in general. Having that positive outlook can certainly help to increase your quality of life, which is important for anyone going through such a difficult time.

What Causes Macular Degeneration

Age-related macular degeneration, which is also called AMD or ARMD, is a an eye disease that is the number one cause of blindness and vision loss for Americans over the age of 65. Taking into account the percentage of Americans in this age bracket has grown considerably in recent years, macular degeneration has become a very serious concern for many individuals afflicted with the disease and the loved ones who help care for them.Macular degeneration got its name from the part of the eye that is affected by the disease: the macula. Your macula, which is a part of the retina, is what gives you the ability to sharply focus on objects within your central vision. This type of sharp focus is necessary to do many everyday tasks, like driving, reading, writing and focusing on other people`s faces when they are speaking to you. When the macula is injured or damaged, is it unable to reflect light back to retina correctly and a varying degree of central vision loss occurs; one that can eventually lead to blindness.There are two main causes of macular degeneration, each causing a different type of the disease: "wet" or "dry" AMD. Dry AMD is caused by a thinning or degeneration of the macular tissues. This creates deposits of pigment that look like yellowish spots on the retina. While there is no cure dry AMD, the central vision loss it causes is gradual and not as severe as the vision loss that occurs with wet AMD.Roughly 10% of dry macular degeneration cases progress to become wet macular degeneration. Wet macular degeneration is a neovascular disease that occurs when new blood vessels begin to grow beneath the retina and then leak fluid and blood. While the body is attempting to supply more oxygen and nutrients to the retina with the growth of these blood vessels, the leakage can unfortunately cause scarring and permanent damage to light-sensitive retinal cells and create blind spots in your central vision.There are a few different ways that your eye doctor can diagnose macular degeneration. Sometimes is it possible for your doctor to perform a routine eye exam and see yellowish spots or fluid in the back of your eye. Another ways to diagnose it is to perform a basic vision test using an Amsler Grid, which is a black and white grid with a small black dot in the center. When patients who have macuhealth look at the grid, the straight lines are distorted and blurry and there are missing or dark areas in the center.To learn more about macular degeneration or find out if the disease is causing your central vision loss, you should make an appointment with your eye care physician today.

Macular Degeneration - Signs and Symptoms

Symptoms of macular degeneration included blurry vision, scotomas (blind spots) and distortion. They are created by disruption, or degeneration of the macula. Macular degeneration usually affects patients over the age of 55, both eyes and leads to progressive loss of vision.Patients with known macular degeneration usually self-monitor with the aid of an Amsler grid. This is basically a piece of graph paper. By checking each eye daily, any blind spots or distortion can be monitored. Persistent changes should be reported to the eye doctor.Patients without the prior diagnosis should have period eye exams. The exam must include dilation of the pupils to allow proper exam of the retina. The macula is the functional center of the retina and can only be examined with dilation.There are characteristic findings that cause your doctor to be suspicious of ARMD. Common signs include drusen, scarring, fluid and sometimes blood. These characteristic findings usually are associated with decreased vision, the severity of which depends on whether or not you have wet or dry form. A retina specialist (a specialized ophthalmologist) is best suited to make the diagnosis. Several tests can be performed including a fluorescein angiogram and possibly an OCT (optical coherence tomography). These tests will aid your physician in making the diagnosis. These tests will also differentiate between the wet and dry form of ARMD. Presently there is no treatment for dry macular degeneration . There are treatments available for the wet form of the disease.While there are other retinal problems that can give similar symptoms, in any case it is extremely important that you report any persistent changes in your vision to your eye doctor. The early treatment is instituted, the better the prognosis.