What is macular degeneration?
Macular degeneration is an optic illness that makes you lot lot come upward across more than together with more than blurred.
In the dorsum of the optic is the retina. In the middle of the retina is the macula. The macula is significant to await sharp. This lets you lot lot read together with recognize faces. With the remainder of the retina is the area. The surroundings shows less precipitous but skillful enough trial unhindered strike.
Is the retina bad blood? Then the macula tin give the sack crusade terms (degeneration). You together with in addition to so come upward across less sharp.
There are several types of macular degeneration.
Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the most common. This shape occurs mainly inwards people over l years. There are ii forms:
- In dry out out AMD eyes run rattling slowly. It tin give the sack have got years before you lot lot genuinely come upward across less sharp. You must motion on a unopen optic on your vision. Once you lot lot start to come upward across deformities, you lot lot should contact your ophthalmologist. It may motion that the dry out out AMD turns into wet AMD.
- In wet AMD, the eyes are apace worse. First forthwith lines appear crooked or wavy. Later you lot lot come upward across more than together with more than spots. Within days or weeks, you lot lot may motion seriously impaired.
By macular degeneration, you lot lot are not completely blind. The illness does have got a major touching on on your social life.
What causes macular degeneration?
The exact crusade of macular degeneration (MD) is not known. However, it is known that the structure of the retina changes. There, liquid is lost between the layers of the retina or inwards that house is tissue (wear). Probably this is due to distressing circulation inwards the retina. It is unclear why this happens precisely inwards the macula, together with not inwards the remainder of the eye.
When macular degeneration, doctors frequently verbalise of wear. That does not cry upward you lot lot have got used your eyes wrong.
There are few known jeopardy factors for macular degeneration:
- Age. The older you lot lot are, the greater the jeopardy of MD. This is especially true for women. This is because they have got less estrogen later menopause (hormone) inwards their blood. This increases the jeopardy of MD.
- Smoking. People who fume more than than ane pack of cigarettes per day, v times every fleck in all probability to have got the illness than people who exercise not smoke. After you lot lot stop smoking, it takes only nearly other fifteen years until the jeopardy of MD returns to normal.
- Unhealthy diet. In particular, a lack of vegetables together with fruits increases the jeopardy of macular degeneration. Too much saturated obese together with cholesterol rich foods increment the risk.
- Alcohol. Drinking alcohol increases the jeopardy of MD.
- Heredity may play a role. Comes to you lot lot inwards the MD family? Then you lot lot also have got a greater jeopardy of getting this disease.
How does the medico determines that you lot lot have got macular degeneration?
Do you lot lot have got symptoms associated with macular degeneration (MD)? Then the ophthalmologist testament showtime stair out your visual acuity. It testament also consider whether you lot lot respect only nearly anomalies.
You testament in all probability learn showtime optic drops inwards your eyes. These drops cook the pupil temporarily greater. The medico tin give the sack await in addition to so skillful inwards your eye. Then the medico looks at your eyes with a device with a calorie-free on it. They thence appear inwards your eye.
Often it is fifty-fifty in addition to so required an additional investigation, e.g., a fluorescence angiography. In addition, you lot lot showtime learn injected a dye into the arm. Then allows the ophthalmologist X-rays of the retina of both eyes. The dye on these photos the veins inwards the eyes to see. The ophthalmologist with it tin give the sack come upward across if you lot lot have got macular degeneration together with how severe it is.
Treatment for macular degeneration
The ophthalmologist tin give the sack procedure wet macular degeneration with:
- Injections into the eye. When dealing with injections into the optic ophthalmologist injects a vessel growth inhibitor. This handling has to motion repeated a number of times. At 70% of people with macular degeneration learn inwards the eyes later these injections, no further backward. At 20-25% improves visual acuity even.
- Laser treatment. Wet MD is to motion treated inwards 10% of the people with Light Amplification past times Stimulated Emission of Radiation beams. The Light Amplification past times Stimulated Emission of Radiation closed leaky blood vessels. The handling prevents the bleeding is higher together with that the sight is deteriorated. A Light Amplification past times Stimulated Emission of Radiation handling is only possible if the leaky blood vessels are far outside the middle of the retina. Sometimes, it proves possible to slow downwards the MD or to bring to a halt.
What tin give the sack you lot lot exercise to protect your eyes?
Macular degeneration (MD) is not curable. However, you lot lot tin give the sack exercise several things to protect your eyes. This allows your sight is possibly less rapidly:
- Protect your eyes from the Lord's Day with sunglasses or a cap.
- Do not smoke.
- Drink niggling alcohol.
- Eat lots of fruits together with vegetables together with depression inwards saturated fat. Especially foods with vitamin C (orange, grapefruit, strawberry, melon), vitamin due east (olive oil, nuts, grains, beans, mango) together with zinc (meat, chicken, walnuts, sesame seeds) is skillful for the eyes. People who many carotenoids (certain dyes) ingestion appear to motion less in all probability to MD. Carotenoids are found mainly inwards eggs, fruit together with vegetables. Vegetables which many of these dyes are are: carrots, kale, Brussels sprouts, spinach, corn, broccoli, greenish peas, broad beans, tomatoes together with lettuce. Fruits which many of these dyes are are: apple, kiwi, orange, grapefruit, mango, peach, nectarine, melon together with grapes.
What touching on does macular degeneration for everyday life?
Macular degeneration (MD) has many implications for everyday life.
Some people come upward across from ane sec to the less precipitous together with stand upward upwards no more than details. This causes problems when driving, reading, watching television set together with recognizing faces.
By MD may respect that you lot lot tin give the sack not exercise your motion over time. Also, only nearly hobbies are difficult with this optic disease. You may sense more than together with more than alone. You have got to hold upward with depression vision.
There are many tools for people with macular degeneration. Examples include enlargement devices together with telescopic spectacles. You tin give the sack learn information closed this at an optometrist or optician.
