Treating retinal diseases effectively
When lines become crooked
Many people develop eye diseases in the course of their lives. The most common form of vision loss in Germany is age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Ageing processes in the retina lead to cell changes at the point of sharpest vision (macula). For those affected, this leads to a decrease in visual acuity. Lines are perceived as distorted and reading and recognizing faces becomes more difficult. However, early changes are not always noticeable and yet are often easily recognizable to ophthalmologists. It therefore makes sense to see an ophthalmologist regularly to check visual acuity and diagnose possible changes to the retina as early as possible. As a general rule, everyone over 60 should see an ophthalmologist once a year!
Effective therapies for AMD
For ophthalmologists, it is important to differentiate whether age-related macular degeneration (AMD) leads to fluid retention in the retina. For this purpose, optical coherence tomography (OCT) is used to take a tomographic image of the retina. This can show whether fluid has accumulated in the area of sharpest vision due to remodeling processes in the tissue. If this is the case, targeted therapy can halt the progression of vision loss.
Effective treatment options for age-related macular degeneration (AMD) have been available for around twenty years. And the treatment figures prove ophthalmology right: since the introduction of these therapies, the number of blindness cases in Germany has fallen! Early diagnosis and effective treatment are therefore the best way to preserve vision into old age.
Priv.-Doz. Dr. med. Christian Wolfram
wolfram@medizinicum.de
Keywords: macular degeneration, macular edema, vascular occlusion, AMD, retina
