Wet Macular Degeneration
Wet macular degeneration is a devastating disorder for anyone to succumb to. It is one of two kinds of macular degeneration disorders, the other being dry macular degeneration. An estimated 12 million Americans have macular degeneration; however, only 10 percent of those people have wet macular degeneration. Wet macular degeneration is considered to be the more severe of the two types.
Before you learn about wet macular degeneration, you need to understand what macular degeneration is in general. Macular degeneration is when your macula (the light sensing cells at the central region of the retina) malfunctions and slowly dies off. Central vision is gradually lost, while peripheral vision remains unchanged.
Wet macular degeneration occurs when abnormal blood vessels (known as choroidal neovascularization or CNV) grow under the retina and macula. These abnormal vessels bleed and leak fluid. This causes the macula to bulge and lift up. It eventually leads to a massive loss in central vision. The progression of wet macular degeneration is often quite rapid and it always leads to devastating results.
Symptoms wet macular degeneration is: straight lines look distorted, blurring and dim colors in central vision, and a dark or empty area in the center of vision. An example: straight lines can appear wavy. Or, you may see a dark spot or several dark spots directly in the center of your vision. This is due to the blood and fluid that is leaking under the macula. Peripheral vision is rarely affected.
Now we will go over the steps that occur during wet macular degeneration. First, abnormal macular blood vessel growth occurs beneath the Brush's membrane and the central drusen patch. Then, new vessels grow and break through. Next, new vessels grow under the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE). Then, the drusen spots are reabsorbed by the new vessels. Next, the vessels begin to leak fluid and blood into the space beneath the RPE. Finally, the fluid and blood breaks through to fill in the space beneath the photosensitive retinal cells. This leads to severe central vision loss from the ballooning up of the macula.
If you have any changes in your vision or suspect a problem, you must go to an eye doctor immediately. Once there, the eye doctor will perform many tests to see if you have wet macular degeneration. This includes: Amsler grid test, vision testing, ophthalmoscopy, fundus photography, and fluorescein angiography.
There is no known cure for wet macular degeneration. Early detection is the best treatment option. Wet macular degeneration can affect anyone, regardless of age, sex, race, or location. It is best that you are aware of the disorder so you can better understand it. Someday, there may be a cure.
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