How do I know if I have macular degeneration?
To help diagnose macular degeneration, an ophthalmologist or optometrist will perform a comprehensive eye exam that may include the following tests:
- Autofluorescence.
- Dilated Eye Exam.
- Fundoscopy or Ophthalmoscopy.
- Visual Acuity Test or Eye Chart Test.
- Fluorescein Angiography.
- Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT)
- Tonometry.
What does it mean to have macular degeneration?
“Macular” means it affects a part of your eye called the macula. AMD is a common condition — it’s a leading cause of vision loss for people age 50 and older. AMD doesn’t cause complete blindness, but losing your central vision can make it harder to see faces, drive, or do close-up work like cooking or fixing things around the house.
What to do if you have macular degeneration?
Cover your eyes with the palms of your hands. Sometimes, your eyes just need a rest. Place your palms over your eyes with you fingers extending over your forehead and the heel of your palms resting on your cheek bones. Make yourself comfortable and avoid putting too much pressure on your eyes.
How to determine if you have wet macular degeneration?
First, your ophthalmologist will perform a dilated eye exam and optical coherence tomography (OCT) imaging to determine whether you have wet macular degeneration.
Can a dry macular degeneration cause total blindness?
If only one eye is affected, you may not notice any changes in your vision because your good eye may compensate for the weak eye. And the condition doesn’t affect side (peripheral) vision, so it rarely causes total blindness. Dry macular degeneration is one of two types of age-related macular degeneration.
How can I keep my eyes healthy if I have macular degeneration?
In macular degeneration, cholesterol can build up in your eyes and form deposits called drusen that affect how well you see. To lower your LDL, limit saturated fat in your diet, exercise for 30 minutes a day, and take statin drugs if you need them. Also, be aware that cholesterol isn’t the only thing that causes drusen to form.
Is there anything I can do to prevent macular degeneration?
Here is a list of 11 steps you can take to prevent or slow the progression of macular degeneration, followed by a brief discussion of each step: Don’t smoke. Eat plenty of dark, leafy green vegetables, such as raw spinach. Take a balanced multivitamin/multimineral supplement, such as Centrum Silver, unless your doctor advises otherwise.
How to slow down age-related macular degeneration?
There’s no cure , but treatment for age-related macular degeneration (AMD) may slow the disease and keep you from having a severe loss of vision.
What is the cure for age-related macular degeneration (AMD)?
Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the most common cause of blindness in the United States. The condition may be present in two forms, including wet AMD and dry AMD. There is currently no cure for AMD, and no treatment available for the dry form of the disease (other than preventative measures).