Vision Loss & Blindness by Macular Degeneration


Vision Loss Blindness


Vision loss is a term used to describe the loss of vision or sight; it can be painful or painless, sudden or gradual, partial or total.

Vision loss can occur for many reasons including; vision diabetic retinopathy, macular degeneration, acute closed angle glaucoma, hypertension, cardiovascular or cerebro-vascular disease, haematological disorders, posterior vitreous detachment, retinal detachment, vitreous haemorrhage, temporal arteritis, optic neuritis and trauma.

Vision loss is due to partial or complete retinal detachment, posterior vitreous detachment, damage to the macular cells of the retina, certain substances such as floaters may be occluding the retina.

Macular Degeneration

Macular Degeneration (MD) is the leading cause of blindness in the UK, 45 % of blind people suffer from the disease. The condition results in a gradual loss of central vision, due to the damage of cells in the macular, which is the light sensitive membrane at the center of the retina.

There are two forms of Macular Degeneration; the ‘Wet’ and the ‘dry’ MD.  The wet MD is more severe, and occurs when abnormal blood vessels grow within the eye. Normally, the macular is protected by a thin tissue that separates it from the fine blood vessels that nourish the back of the eye, these vessels bleed and leak causing rapid loss of vision. It is curable if caught soon enough but can be costly. Dry MD occurs as cells within the macular begin to die, leading to a build-up of waste products in a layer of cells below the retina. There is currently no cure for Dry MD.

The macular is the point where light rays meet on the retina when they are focused by the cornea and eye lens. The macular acts similar to a camera film. If the macular is damaged, the central part of the image is not perceived and appears like a blurred area while the areas around it are seen more clearly. In macular degeneration peripheral objects appear more clearly and are usually not affected, but reading or close work may be difficult without the use of special low vision optical aids.

The type of food we eat plays an important role in our tendency to develop AMD even though there are other risk factors such as age, light exposure, smoking and being overweight.  If we improve the kind of food that we eat, we could potentially reduce our risk of developing AMD quite significantly.

There have been claims by scientists that some common eye disease that lead to degeneration of sight can be prevented by increasing the intake of micronutrients, vitamins and antioxidants through increasing the amount of fruits, vegetables and nuts in the diet. It is also important to have frequent eye tests so that early signs of macular degeneration can be detected and further damage can be prevented. 

To make a proper diagnosis of macular degeneration, your medical history, symptoms and examination of the eye are required. The most common symptoms are blurring of central vision. There are different tests that can be done to examine the eyes. An ophthalmoscope is the instrument used by optometrists to examine the macular and see if there is any damage. Other tests include grid test and colour vision test.  Tests can also be done to identify conditions that have caused macular degeneration such as fasting and blood sugar level  in the case of diabetes.  An ophthalmologist may at times inject a dye into a patients arm and take photos of the retina and macular called a fluorescent angiogram, this helps to identify any blood vessel abnormalities present.

There is a whole range of treatments available for AMD, depending on the disease stage, some patients benefit from low vision aids, and others if detected early could have an argon laser treatment to prevent severe vision loss. Laser therapy seals up leaking bleeding blood vessels and leaves most other parts of the eye intact because the narrow beams ensure precision, allowing only diseased blood vessels to be targeted. This is a commonly performed treatment, which also affords the patient opportunity of spending less time in the hospital and little discomfort, since the surgery takes a few minutes and is done with the aid of a local anesthetic. The patient can even go back home and resume normal daily activities.  If left untreated, blindness is a serious risk factor caused by long-term macular degeneration.

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