Why glaucoma and macular degeneration affect vision

Permission to republish any abstract or part of an abstract in any form must be obtained in writing from the ARVO Office prior to publication.

View Metrics. Forgot password? To View More Create an Account or Subscribe Now. You must be signed into an individual account to use this feature. But this doesn't mean you'll lose all of your sight. Vision loss is typically central and people retain their peripheral vision. Some people have only mild central vision loss, while in others it can be more severe. Dry macular degeneration can affect one or both eyes. 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. It can progress to wet neovascular macular degeneration, which is characterized by blood vessels that grow under the retina and leak. The dry type is more common, but it usually progresses slowly over years.

The wet type is more likely to cause a relatively sudden change in vision resulting in serious vision loss. These changes may be the first indication of macular degeneration, particularly if you're over age Located at the back of your eye in the center of your retina, a healthy macula allows for normal central vision acuity. The macula is made up of densely packed light-sensitive cells called cones and rods.

Cones are responsible for color vision, and rods enable you to see shades of gray. No one knows exactly what causes dry macular degeneration. But research indicates it may be affected by a combination of heredity and environmental factors, including smoking, obesity and diet.

The condition develops as the eye ages. Dry macular degeneration affects the macula — an area of the retina that's responsible for clear vision in your direct line of sight. People affected by open angle glaucoma may not notice any visual changes initially. As damage to the optic nerve continues to increase, though, people will start to notice blind spots in peripheral vision. Eventually, total blindness can occur. People affected by angle closure glaucoma will typically have sudden onset of eye pain, see halos around lights, or experience blurred vision.

Other symptoms can include headache, nausea, and vomiting. Minimizing certain lifestyle choices that are strongly correlated with the development of macular degeneration can help prevent AMD. Lifestyle changes to consider include:. Foods to help prevent AMD include leafy green vegetables, yellow fruits and vegetables, and fish. The best prevention for glaucoma is to get routine eye exams by an eye specialist, such as an ophthalmologist a medical doctor specializing in eye diseases or optometrist a primary vision care doctor.

Determining if there is a family history of glaucoma is also important due to the hereditary component of the disease. Similar to macular degeneration, maintaining a healthy weight, not smoking, and keeping your blood pressure and other chronic conditions under control can minimize vision loss from glaucoma.

As of now, there are no surgeries or specific procedures that can cure dry AMD. There are options available to assist people living with the condition, however. Low-vision tools, such as magnifying tools and handheld computers, can be helpful. Low-vision techniques, like using high-lumen light sources, reducing glare, and increasing contrast can also help compensate for central vision loss. A vision rehabilitation specialist can provide you with techniques to leverage your peripheral vision to be able to read, shop, and even cook.

They can also determine other services that may be helpful, such as mobility services or performing home assessments to minimize hazards and injury risk.

People with glaucoma do have some medications and procedures available to help prevent vision loss. Eye drops can be prescribed. They can either decrease aqueous humor production or help assist aqueous fluid drain through the drainage angle. The ultimate goal is to decrease eye pressure and prevent optic nerve damage.

People who have glaucoma may be eligible for laser surgery. These procedures, often done in an ophthalmologist's office or a same-day surgery center, allow the ophthalmologist to widen the drainage angle to assist with better draining of the aqueous humor. In the case of angle closure glaucoma, the laser surgery can be used to create a tiny hole in the iris to allow the aqueous humor to drain through the drainage angle. Age-related macular degeneration and glaucoma both affect your eyes, but they do so in different ways.

There are two types of macular degeneration: dry and wet AMD. Both can cause central vision loss, but peripheral or side vision is usually not affected. On the other hand, glaucoma can cause complete vision loss. Getting routine eye examinations by a specialist such as an ophthalmologist or optometrist and embracing a healthy, active lifestyle can help prevent macular degeneration and glaucoma and their potential impact on your vision.

Make sure you locate a reputable eye specialist to discuss use of any medications or therapies to prevent macular degeneration or glaucoma. Macular degeneration cannot always be prevented because the top risk factors are family history and being White. Minimizing other risk factors, such as being overweight and using tobacco products, has been shown to decrease your risk of developing macular degeneration.

Since early symptoms of macular degeneration are not always evident in people affected with macular degeneration, having routine annual eye exams by an eye specialist, such as an ophthalmologist or optometrist, is necessary because eye specialists can do testing to identify early signs of AMD.

There is no way to reverse macular degeneration at this time. The American Macular Degeneration Foundation supports important research on the treatment macular degeneration. Your donations are critical to support ongoing research into the causes and treatment of macular degeneration. Click to learn how your generosity can contribute to treatment breakthroughs in macular degeneration.

Macular Degeneration Macular Degeneration is the leading cause of vision loss, affecting more than 10 million Americans — more than cataracts and glaucoma combined. At present, Macular Degeneration is considered an incurable eye disease. Illustrations of the anatomy of a normal human eye and loss of central vision: Anatomy of a Normal Human Eye Animation of loss of central vision One can compare the human eye to a camera.

Early AMD — Most people do not experience vision loss in the early stage of AMD, which is why regular eye exams are important, particularly if you have more than one risk factor see below. Early AMD is diagnosed by the presence of medium-sized drusen yellow deposits beneath the retina.

Intermediate AMD — At this stage, there may be some vision loss, but there still may not be noticeable symptoms.