In the 1990s almost ten per cent of the aging population had to deal with macular degeneration (MD), an eye condition involving damage to the center of the retina, which makes it difficult to decipher fine details.
But times do changeand in this casefor the better. A new study shows that macular degeneration is now a much less common condition. In fact, according to the current research, macular degeneration now affects less than seven percent of the U.S. population aged 40 and older.
To gauge Macular Degenerations impact, researchers looked at high-resolution pictures of the eyes of 5,553 U.S. adults, aged 40 or older, who participated in the 2005-2008 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Based on the digital photographs taken of both eyes, the researchers found that 6.5 percent of the participants had signs of some level of MD, including tiny yellow or white deposits in the retina, pigment changes, or deterioration of the retina and surrounding tissue.
Less than one percent had the advanced stage of MD in which eyesight is more severely affected.
What does this mean? An estimated 7.2 million people in the U.S. still have some degree of macular degeneration and the disease has advanced in 890,000 people. The report was published in the latest issue of Archives of Ophthalmology.
Although the researchers arent exactly sure why the condition has declined, they suspect it could be the result of reduced smoking behavior, better diets, and the use of antioxidant vitamins and the mineral zinc. Even though macular degeneration is on the decline, its still all too commonespecially among seniors. The best defense against the disease is early detection, so be sure to schedule regular visits with your ophthalmologist.Symptoms of MD:*Blurred or decreased central close-up and distance vision; unfortunately, people subconsciously ignore the eye with the worst vision prior to development of the condition in the previously good eye.*Blind spots.*Straight lines look irregular or bent, called metamorphosis, and objects appear a different color or shape in each of the eyes.*Objects appearing smaller in one eye than the other.In general, people older than 45 years should have a complete eye examination and then follow-up examinations every two years.People with age-related macular degeneration should check their vision daily, or at least weekly, with an Amsler grid. Used since 1945, the grid is made up of horizontal and vertical lines and it monitors a person's central visual field. Your doctor will supply one. Tell your ophthalmologist right away if there are any changes in vision.Robin Westen is ThirdAges medical reporter. Check for her daily updates. She is the author of Relationship Repair.See what others have to say about this story or leave a comment of your own.
